KOTOR: The Power of Choice
by Sith Lord Darth Revan
Summary: Alternate Universe story involving a male Revan remembering his true identity. Part I primarily following Revan Completed, Part II covering the second KOTOR and the Exile's tale in progress...
1. Prologue: The Power of Choice

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my own thoughts. My writing meant to entertain and as such I encourage others to write out their ideas as well. Its been a long time since I started writing my first story (A Han Solo one I tend to ignore having wrote) but I appreciate all the support and loyalty of my fans. As such this story is dedicated to them as well as my family and friends who inspire me to write as I do.

Author's Note: After looking over most of my older stories I realized Revan is mainly the same person in all of them. Since; technically, Revan is an extension of the player I wrote him as a Male... and a sarcastic asshole like myself. From what I've gotten back from feedback its worked out pretty well and I decided I needed to make a new(er) story that sort of got me back to my roots in Knights of the Old Republic if you will, one based on the first game but of course with the twists I love to put in place. As with most of my stories I wanted to follow SW: KOTOR Cannon with a Lightside Male Revan and a Female Lightside Exile and to do so I had to do a little digging and replaying of the games. Its been a bloody long journey lets say but I hope I don't disappoint.

As with all of my stories I have a background build for my characters that I tend to carry over to other stories. The main is of Revan being of Mandalorian descent. Having played both games extensively I saw it as an interesting and very dramatic role. Having to betray his own people to save the galaxy and then, having to betray again. Betrayal, love and compassion are very complex human emotions but at the same time they can be very simple as well. A child may love unconditionally but unconsciously betray out of innocent ignorance. A child can be the cruelest and kindest of any individuals and I know everyone can remember being younger and either being made fun of, or taking part in taunting someone who was different. Being half-Korean myself I have been on the negative end of some racial-based comments throughout my life and it has always been something that has bothered me. I try to write realistic situations, psychologically and physically through my stories but I have difficulty touching base with some of the subjects I write.

I plan to throw a lot of time and effort into this story and I actually intend for it to be my masterpiece if you will. As I've grown older more and more responsibilities had been laid down on me and I have less and less time to exercise my creative genes in writing which I have found to be a release of much of the anger I held over many things as well as a way of entertaining myself and others. This is probably the longest I've taken to respond to anything in any of my stories but I wanted to thank you all for your support. I've decided that as I wanted to start with my roots in Fanfiction, this story would cover the first Knights of the Old Republic game but of course it would involve a twist that almost all of my stories retain. Revan keeping his identity. It starts at the moment Darth Revan and Padawan Bastila Shan face off on the bridge of his flagship and from there, will take on a life of its own I hope. Rarely do I plan out a story which is why I have so many dead ends on ones I've written and only a few were actually completed. I've decided as a means of appeasement to my loyal readers to make this a blending of all the stories and tell the story I've been trying to, while staying true to what I always tried to write. I thank all of you for your support over the years and I enjoy each review and each story I read. Creativity and imagination are the greatest assets humanity has I believe and its through those that we distinguish ourselves from animals. But this is getting too long so on with the story.

_Italics Thoughts_

**Bold Shouting**

Normal Do I really need to explain this one?

As for my writing style... Its just my own style and if it doesn't fit what you're used to I apologize... but its hard to change it.

Prologue: The Power of Choice

War. It brought power, riches, death and pain. War was the ultimate achievement of the galaxy's populace and it had been restructured and perfected over thousands upon thousands of years. In the end of all the talks of peace and justice and coexistence, war had always remained the blemish upon the galaxy. Like a plague it would spread, consuming and destroying until nothing but ashes remained. War was a constant in the universe and the Jedi Civil War, in its second bloody year was no different from ten thousand other wars that had been fought in the lifetime of the Galactic Republic.

Standing tall on the bridge of his great flagship, _Revenge_. Darth Revan, former Jedi Knight of the Jedi Order, former Supreme Commander and General of the Republic and ruling Dark Lord of the Sith stared through a mask of red and black, the colors marking the darkness of his soul and the blood he had spilled. The sight of Revan was imposing but then again, everything about the man exuded power. From the muscle structure Revan so well maintained or from the armor he wore, the mark of a seasoned warrior, Revan was not one to be taken lightly. The Force had made Revan the most powerful and the most deadly man in the galaxy and second to none. The man's charisma made him respected and well-loved by those who served under him and that respect of the man only grew when Revan fought. Watching Revan fight was like watching some beautiful and terrible dance and the grace and power of the man was almost tangible in the air.

"Bring the ship about and divert shielding to our forward section. The Republic blockade is crumbling and we must pursue."

Revan's voice was cold, holding no emotion and the command was said for all ears on the bridge to hear. Revan's voice held authority and snapped like a whip, drawing the attention of all his bridge crew as they complied.

Slowly the _Revenge_ turned, pursuing the fleeing Republic vessels as orders were relayed to other Sith vessels. Former Republic soldiers, now Sith chased down their former allies and butchered them. The battle had not been one-sided and the burning hulls of dozens of ships, Sith and Republic alike spun out of control in the vacuum of space.   
"Pursuit course laid in, all power to the forward shields. We have incoming Republic fighters and boarding craft."

The tactical officer spoke in a business-like voice. The officer was one of Revan's finest, having served him well since the end of the Mandalorian conflict.

"Very good Commander Torak. Sound the alarm and have the men prepare for boarders."

Revan's voice held no waver, no fear. Revan was the rock the Sith stood against, holding them up before the storm threatening to engulf the galaxy. The storms of chaos as the Republic, weakened after so many years of war and destruction threatened to collapse.

Revan had seen this weakness in the Republic and had exploited it, using his military power gained during the Mandalorian wars to convince others to join his crusade to strengthen the Republic. The fighting between Republic worlds alone would have been devastating enough without any outside threats but Revan's eyes saw far and his senses told him he needed the galaxy strong. The galaxy would only be strong if it was made to be strong and Revan had sacrificed his title, his honor and his very soul to obliterate that weakness. A flickering of dots against the blackness of space and the red-orange sky of the gas giant they were orbiting drew Revan's eyes.

"They're getting close, let them get closer and show them our lovely defensive batteries."

The voice held very little in the way of humor and no one smiled at the grim joke.

Red-orange blasterfire, nearly invisible against the backdrop of the swirling gas giant slammed into the first wave of Republic fighters, sending machinery and bodies into space. The fight was over for them quickly as vacuum forced the life from them and they knew nothing more. Some impacted on the hull of the _Revenge_ and were splattered against the gray hull like insects on a speeder's windscreen while others merely drifted in space, their final struggles forever etched in their horrified expressions. It was nothing new to one like Revan and he felt nothing.

The Sith crew became slightly more frantic, their professionalism slipping as the tone to the alarm changed from a warning, to a threat. One of the Sith stepped forward, nervously saluting Revan as the Dark Lord turned to him.

"What is it?"

Revan's voice was flat, toneless and the shaking of the Sith officer increased dramatically as he replied.

"We've been boarded by several heavy assault craft, Milord. We estimate two hundred boarders and some are Jedi, Lord Revan."

The officer finished, sweat beading his forehead as he stood perfectly at attention. Revan simply nodded, turning back to the view of the fleeing Republic ships. Something didn't feel right about the battle but then, he didn't really care.

_"This is impossible..." _

The thought was more a reaction than a complaint as Bastila Shan, Padawan of the Jedi Order tried to keep up with the Republic soldiers before her that were, for lack of a better term tearing into the Sith. Sith and Republic soldiers alike were elites and the fighting was becoming more and more primitive as blasters were being discarded for blades. Of two hundred initially involved in the assault, half the number were holding their boarding craft and a quarter of the whole were dead. Fifteen Jedi had been reduced to seven and Bastila jumped back, shielding her eyes from a flash grenade thrown by the Sith as red-orange blasterbolt fire flew through the air back and forth between the ranks of Sith defenders and Republic boarders.

**"Move it, keep them on the run!"**

A Republic soldier wearing a Lieutenant's rank shouted. Bastila hadn't taken the time to get to know the names of each and every soldier in the group and this one was no different. Judging by the rank, Bastila assumed he was the ranking non-Jedi officer of their boarding party. Looking over her shoulder at the trail of destruction, Bastila's gray eyes turned back to the front, her golden lightsaber blade raising to deflect a stray blaster bolt that was much too close for comfort.

The initial Sith response had wiped out nearly thirty of their people. Dark Jedi had been amongst the defenders and had struck down two of her fellow Jedi before they had secured the area. Pushing deeper into the ship, Bastila was shocked slightly at the Sith's tactics. They fought almost like Mandalorians, hitting her group with small shock-trooper squads and breaking off. The tactic was designed to maximize the amount of damage a small, well-armed and well-trained group of soldiers could do to a significantly larger attack force. Needless to say their numbers were suffering because of this. A majority of the Sith's defenders were at their battle stations while even more were trying to get behind them and cut off their escape route.

"_Bloody Hell that was close!"_

Bastila's heart raced as a grenade rolled past her and a Republic soldier threw himself on it, protecting the Jedi and his comrades with his own grisly death. Two Republic soldiers still died due to the powerful explosion but a catastrophe was averted and the soldiers and Jedi moved on, each silently mourning the man's death but having no time to reflect as another group of Sith shock troopers appeared from in front of and behind their unit.

_"We're too close together. A few grenades and- Blast!"_

Bastila's hand raised and the Force swelled around the Padawan, sending the deadly grenade back to its owner. The Sith shock squad in the front was dispersed and the Republic commandoes turned their full attention to those in the rear. Twenty blaster rifles opened up and the five man Sith squad was annihilated. Moving forward towards a steady forty-five degree angled ramp, Bastila saw a Republic soldier pull out his pistol and shoot two of the Sith wounded by the grenade in their faceplates. Blinking at the barbaric display, the Padawan was urged forward by the Jedi trailing behind her and none commented on the crime.

"We've got a problem..."

Revan's full attention turned from the breaking lines of the Republic forces to the officer that called for his attention and he peered down onto one of the consoles of his ship's internal security readout.

"Well, I could have told you that."

Revan muttered, his left hand urging the Sith out of his way as he double-checked the readings. Thinking slowly, Revan recalled most of his soldiers to defend the ramp leading to his bridge and turned any available units from pursuing the Republic strike force to hitting their landing craft. With no way out, they would be separated and destroyed quickly and the problem would be dealt with. Still, something did not feel right and Revan cautioned.

"Keep the majority of our forces stationed around the ship's vital systems. We can't rule out sabotage."

Revan's voice remained calm, though it was growing apparent that the situation could very quickly get out of hand. Behind Revan a Republic starcruiser's engines were struck and it banked, its nose turning downward at a ninety degree angle as it was pulled down into the red-orange gas giant's gravity well. Revan turned around, raising an eyebrow at the sight.

_"Now that is what I am talking about." _

Studying the layout of the fleeing Republic forces, Revan narrowed his eyes, a small frown working its way on his hidden features.

"They're leading us into a trap..."

The Dark Lord said slowly, his voice never changing from its calm, emotionless tone. For the briefest moment Revan wished he had Taya Kenobi in his battle group but cut off the line of thought. Taya had been Malak's lover and he had given Malak the say in what to do with the young General. Malak had wanted her to be sent back to the Jedi, perhaps to help her or maybe in some vain gesture of saving her from the darkness consuming them, Revan really didn't bother thinking about it much. It had all simply resulted in the loss of a competent and capable warrior. Revan's eyes caught movement and he moved to a console on the bridge, flicking a switch.

"Malak your ship is trailing fuel, pull back and get behind the _Revenge._"

Revan ordered, his voice holding only a hint of unease. One good shot could take out Malak's ship and Revan needed Malak. Malak's mechanical voice crackled over the static of the communicator.

"Yes, Lord Revan."

The voice was clipped, cold and mechanical. Briefly, Revan's mind entertained how much he and Malak sounded alike since the _incident_ between himself and Malak over their policy towards training assassins. Then again, Revan simply could not summon the energy to care and he calmly crossed his hands behind his back, spreading his legs apart to about a shoulder's width as he watched the battle progress.

The battle to Revan's bridge had been hard fought and the Republic Commandoes as well as the Jedi strike team that had been hand-selected from the best both organizations had to offer was feeling the effects. Twenty Republic Commandoes and five Jedi stood outside of the sealed door that would take them into Revan's bridge, into the heart of the beast. All were out of breath, some were injured and most of the Republic soldiers wore expressions of men and women who knew they were going to die. The hundred Republic soldiers that had been holding their landing craft were butchered, the Sith simply sealing off and decompressing the deck before restoring the atmosphere and destroying the Republic landing craft. The only hope the strike force had was to capture Revan, to use him as a hostage and barter their way off the ship.

"Everyone catch your breath. We've got one Hell of a fight ahead of us."

The Lieutenant leading the Republic soldiers stated, his armored helmet gone and only a simple linen cap covering his short military haircut. After waiting for several minutes, the Lieutenant and two other Republic soldiers moved to the sealed doors, placing explosive charges to breech the locks and gain access to the bridge.

**"Fire in the hole!"**

Was shouted and the Jedi and Republic Commandoes took cover, a bright flash of white blinding them momentarily before it slowly burned a large hole into the doorway. Immediately red-orange blasterbolts began streaming towards them and the Jedi took to the front, their lightsabers deflecting back the deadly energy to its owners. From the bridge of his damaged flagship, Darth Malak glared through pale yellow eyes at the _Revenge_. The crew of the _Leviathan_ were loyal, their loyalty tested at Telos IV. Turning to the Admiral of the battle group, Malak gave a not so simple order.

"Fire on the _Revenge's_ bridge."

The mechanical voice echoed through the bridge of the _Leviathan_, the bridge crew and command staff falling silent. Looking confused and showing it clearly on his face, the Admiral of the battle group stepped up to Malak, shakily questioning.

"A- are you certain, Lord Malak? Revan would certainly-"

The man's words ceased as a massive pale hand reached out, grasping his chin and snapping his head to the side. A pop echoed through the bridge and Malak turned to the next highest ranked member of his battle group commanders. Admiral Saul Karath calmly straightened his uniform, swallowed the lump in his throat and ordered in a voice that brokered no arguments.

"The Dark Lord of the Sith gave you a direct order. Carry it out!"

Malak crossed his arms over his chest, his yellow eyes glistening as they shined golden against the harsh light of the gas giant below.

_"You've done this to yourself, my friend. You shouldn't have pushed me as you did..."_

Malak ranted to himself. Slowly, a single tear slid down Malak's cheek, stopping at his metal faceplate and burning against the fresh wound where Darth Revan had so viciously maimed his apprentice.

Bastila had struck down a fierce Dark Jedi with surprising ferocity and slipped quickly from an offensive to a defensive stance, one hand moving to center her balance while her blade shifted to point at Darth Revan. Revan hadn't been facing them until that moment and Bastila could see the last survivor of the Republic Commandoes had tried futilely to stab Revan in the back with a vibrosword. The Lieutenant was choking slowly and Bastila opened her mouth to order Revan to release the man when the Force echoed of death around her and sickening cracking noise reached her senses as Revan used his dark powers to smash each bone in the man's neck. The Republic Lieutenant collapsed lifelessly to the ground; a gurgle escaping him in his death throes as Revan's masked features shifted from Bastila, warily to the three Jedi flanking her. Bastila glared defiantly at the Dark Lord, sensing his unease and stating with more bravery and certainty than she felt.

"You cannot win, Revan!"

A cultured Talravin accent reached Revan's frantic mind and he glanced at the Jedi warily. Something wasn't right, the Force was warning him but he couldn't sense where the threat was originating. Adopting a Juyo opening stance, Revan twirled his blade, sliding calmly into his opening pose. Juyo, to a Master of the form was deadly against more than one opponent and Revan knew it was likely the best form to adopt until he separated where the threat was to him.

_"Strange... I didn't sense a threat from them before... It almost feels as if its-" _

Revan's internal musings ceased and his eyes widened in realization and a sneer twisted his face. Malak was betraying him.

Bastila's gaze flickered momentarily from the deadly blood red blade of Darth Revan to the strange stream of red-orange light that slowly streamed towards the _Revenge _from the _Leviathan_. The Force let out a warning but before Bastila could do anything and invisible hand singled her out, as if Revan was lashing out at the only foe that would directly challenge him in his final moments and he let out a wordless shout, the Force propelling Bastila backwards until she struck the deck with painful force. The entire front of the bridge was engulfed in white jets of superheated plasma and Bastila felt searing pain erupt on her skin as molten shrapnel rained down upon her. Using the Force to shield herself, Bastila struggled to her feet as the smoke and plasma cleared to see her Jedi companions smoking and mutilated corpses and Revan, seemingly unspoiled by the blast. That Darth Revan remained whole while her Jedi comrades seemed to be burning in their own funeral pyres brought a cold feeling of resentment into Bastila's heart before the Padawan pushed it from her mind.

_"That could have been me..."_

Bastila's mind whispered to her consciousness, the Padawan shakily made her way over the scorched deck, her lightsaber hilt still in her hand though the blade was inactive. Thumbing her switch, Bastila felt the lightsaber hilt begin to heat up in her hand and tossed it aside, her eyes staring widely at the melted tip of her hilt. Glancing down to make certain she was still in one piece, Bastila silently thanked the Force, and Revan's anger that she was only bruised and suffering superficial wounds when she could have very well been dead.

"May the Force take you..."

The Padawan's voice was a whisper as she looked down on the smoking corpses of her comrades and she nearly screamed in surprise when Revan's form moved.

_"Impossible!"_

Smoldering holes were visible in the black fabric of Revan's battle robes and Bastila swallowed nervously, her eyes frantically searching for a weapon, any weapon. The_ Revenge_ lurched heavily, a groaning sound reverberating along its damaged hull and Bastila was thrown to the deck. Pushing herself up, the Padawan slowly, cautiously crawled to Revan's side, seeing his armor had protected most of his vital areas but had still left much of him exposed to the plasma. In a way, the Padawan felt she owed Revan for having thrown her across the bridge. While the intent on Revan's part was malicious it had saved her from the fate of her fellow Jedi and the Padawan laid a small hand on Revan's breastplate, not knowing what to do. Revan moved slightly and Bastila pulled her hand back quickly, though not quickly enough as Revan's iron grasp took hold of her hand, squeezing with bruising force.

"Let go.."

Bastila asked, having nothing to fight off Revan and not particularly wanting to strike the man. Revan's grip eased, though did not yield and the Dark Lord's mask turned to the Padawan. There was a flickering in the Force, as if a candle was burning and the wind was threatening to blow it out. Bastila realized rather quickly that it was Revan's life and he was slipping into death.

"Forge... Mala-"

Whatever Revan had been saying, Bastila could not make sense of and the Padawan felt Revan's grip on her hand slackened as his arm fell to the deck. Revan was unconscious and slowly, his body was shutting down. It was almost as if she could feel his death as her own and Bastila was horrified. Revan's body convulsed slightly as it attempted to take in air, but couldn't and the Padawan, having only seen the more brutal part of war on Revan's ship could not abide doing nothing. Without thought, Bastila pulled back Revan's mask and laid his body straight. Tilting Revan's head back, Bastila could see blood staining the inside of Revan's hood before she noticed his face.

Blackened veins ran across pale gray skin and Bastila realized when she moved his head back it was cool to the touch. It was almost like looking down on a days old corpse and the Padawan felt bile rising in her throat. Revan's eyes were open but nothing shined in them, only a sickly yellow pallor rimmed by a red ring of burst blood vessels. A horrible wheeze of air being denied reached Bastila's ears and the Padawan abandoned her disgust of Revan's appearance, forcing his mouth open and with a deep breath, breathing into Revan's mouth. Moving back, Bastila noticed Revan's armor had very little give and quickly pulled away the straps as the wheezing sound continued. Revan's presence remained but weak, flickering and almost gone and Bastila felt frustrated tears on her face as she finally pulled Revan's breastplate free and began pushing down on Revan's chest with both hands.

"One, two, three"

Bastila counted, pushing down on a certain part of Revan's solid chest and flinching as she heard a rib crack under the pressure. A cough tore through Revan's throat and Bastila nearly fell back in startled disbelief. Licking her lips nervously, Bastila tasted blood and immediately spat it out, knowing it to be Revan's and not hers. Revan's eyes no longer had any color but white and Bastila felt her chest ache. This was wrong, she couldn't just sit there and let another human being, regardless of whom; die in such a way. The Dark Lord's gray skin began turning red and then purple and Bastila moved forward again, pinching Revan's nose closed and allowing the Dark Lord to borrow her breath before she repeated the CPR motions. Still it was not enough and Revan's body, separated from his mind struggled to do the simple task of breathing.

"I cannot- I **will** not accept this..."

Bastila ignored the moisture on her face and her shaken nerves. Even the noise of explosions on the _Revenge's_ hull did not interrupt her amazing show of compassion for a man who would have killed her without a thought. Trying a new approach, Bastila reached out with the Force, tearing into Revan's flickering presence and tying it with her own life-force. She could not live with allowing someone to die in such a horrible way and she bravely made her choice, forcing her own life essence into Revan's damaged and dying body. As if fate were against her, Bastila felt a block against her attempts. Something within Revan was rebelling against the intrusion. She needed to convince it, convince _him_ she was trying to help him.

Opening her mind and fully releasing all of her neural blocks, Bastila promptly passed out on top of Revan. Exhaustion tore at her and her muscles ached. A pressure was building on her chest and the Padawan let out a cry, opening her mouth and pushing herself to her knees. Revan was breathing on his own when she looked down on him and she thanked the Force, the thought never occuring to her that she simply could have killed him to end his suffering. The Padawan had no ulterior motives, no knowledge of who Revan had been before he had become the Dark Lord of the Sith. They had not been friends or lovers or even casual acquaintances. It made the Padawan's actions to save the Dark Lord's life all the more meaningful and deep within the mind of Darth Revan, something stirred to life and the Dark Lord's unconscious mind felt the bond, felt the compassion of the young woman who had saved him and recoiled as if burnt.

AN: A bit graphic, I know. I personally had to watch my father suffer in a similar way before dying five years ago and its not like in the movies. Asphyxiation takes a god awful long time and I can honestly say watching it and not being able to do anything about it is one of the most horrible feelings in the world... My father was clinically brain dead at the time and we had chosen as a family to respect his wishes and pull the plug on his respirator... When we write we throw a lot of our own personal lives and feelings into the story and I decided to throw that feeling in. I really hope I could convey the feeling I felt and overlap it with Bastila. Its truly a death I would wish on no one.


	2. Chapter 1: Survival

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 1: Survival

She wanted to cry in frustration and curse the galaxy but she did not. She wanted to take her tiny fists and smash them against the cold hard durasteel of the deck but she could not. She simply did not have the energy. Lying on the floor of the _Revenge's _bridge, Bastila Shan's mind went back to her childhood, before the wars before the heartache of watching billions, trillions of lives be lost and destroyed. She remembered her father, his kind blue eyes and his tired smile as he lifted her into his arms. She remembered his smell, so different from the burning flesh and smoldering metal around her and she remembered his voice, deep and reassuring and always with a laugh as he called her his little princess. Two gray eyes glistened as they looked up at the ceiling of Revan's flagship's bridge and a trickle of water managed to work its way out of Padawan Bastila Shan's eyes.

"I'll always love you, my little Princess. I'll always be proud of you, be the best you can be but never forget your heart. Never forget love, Bastila..."

Her father had whispered those words to her as her tiny five year old arms had clung to him and she had cried, cried like she never had before or since and begged him to let her stay. Her mother, oh how she resented that woman, had pulled them apart, laying a deceptively gentle kiss on her forehead and told her to be strong. She had spat in her face and stomped off towards the Jedi transport, not seeing the look of devastation on her mother's face as she was pulled into her husband's arms. She had grown up secretly hating her mother for making her leave her father. For being where she was, Bastila's secret hatred grew as her jaw clenched. The Jedi had strictly forbidden contact with her parents and she had hated them too. She had grown out of her hatred but the resentment remained. Her father had told her to remember love but it had been so long since she had felt, been allowed to express love than she was terrified of what it would be like, what it would make her into.

"What have I ever done that is so terrible? Why was I forced into this life?"

The dying sounds of a great and powerful starship was her only answer and Bastila managed, barely to roll over and push herself to her knees. She had collapsed after joining with Revan's essence and she had never felt so weak, so helpless before. There were no reinforcements coming, no Sith to finish her and perhaps Revan off and no other Jedi to sense her distress. She was alone on the dying ship with a comatose Dark Lord of the Sith and she barely had the energy to stand. A strangled sob escaped Bastila's throat as she almost stood, slipping in a pool of crimson liquid she realized was Revan's blood.

"You have no right to bleed that much and still live..."

Bastila's voice was a soft gasp, her skin flushed from exhaustion and the sensation of anger she had become vulnerable to in those few hopeless moments where her only companions were her own memories and the unmoving bodies of the dead. Revan she ignored, not wanting to look at him for fear of falling to the temptation to kill him. She would be safe, alive and well on a Republic ship if she was not here, she would be strong and the Republic would be strong but instead she was as weak as a Kinrath pup and her body hurt so terribly she had thought for a brief moment she was dead. Gasping, the Padawan crawled beside Revan's body, her hands tilting his head to look at the horrible gash bleeding freely through his hair. Weakly tearing off her sash, Bastila bandaged the wound and trembled at the thoughts plaguing her mind. She had no right to think like that. Revan, she would save him, she would prove she was not as horrible as her heart was telling her she was. Grabbing the lapels of Revan's black robes that had been under his armored breastplate, Bastila pulled for all she was worth, a stab of pain coursing through her arms and her back and her legs.

"You are too bloody heavy!"

The Padawan hissed, pulling off the remainder of Revan's heavy armor and stopping when she had began pulling away his heavy robes. A slight flush colored the Padawan's cheeks and she calmed herself, drawing on the Force to aid her. The Force answered Bastila's call more quickly than she had ever felt it do before and her strength returned to her. The Force was with Revan and Bastila and with renewed strength, the Padawan picked Revan up, moving him into a sitting position and curling her arms under his, locking her hands together over his broad chest. Pulling with all the strength she had, Bastila heard the satisfying sound of Revan's boots dragging against the deck of the _Revenge's_ bridge and forced a smile on her face.

"There, that's not so bad is it?"

The Padawan asked Revan's unconscious body. Revan, unsurprisingly; had nothing to say and remained limp in the Padawan's arms. With a frustrated sigh, Bastila took in a deep breath and pulled Revan's body again, nearly tripping over and landing on her posterior but catching herself. Red blood was seeping through her sash, bandaged around Revan's head and Bastila could feel the hot liquid soaking into her robes but she paid it no mind. She needed to save him, save them and nothing had ever felt so right to her before. There was no danger, no warning in the Force and she knew the Force was with her.

Distant flashes of light drew Bastila's eyes from Revan's body to the fleeing Sith fleet and her heart beat faster. The battle was won and the Republic strategy had worked. Taking in a shaky breath, Bastila looked right then left and saw an escape pod access on the side of the bridge. Pulling and pulling, Bastila ignored the aching in her arms and legs and the sharp pain in her back until she reached the hatch to the escape pod. Nearly dropping Revan in relief, Bastila managed to catch him without falling on top of him again and laid him gently to the floor. Pushing the switch to open the hatch, Bastila could see the interior of the escape pod, the most beautiful sight she had seen all day and retook her firm hold on Revan.

"We're almost there..."

The Padawan muttered, pulling herself and Revan into the pod with one final pull. Bastila lay on the floor gasping for breath as sweat beaded on her forehead and soaked her once lovely robes. Remaining that way for some time, Bastila felt a weight between her thighs and on her stomach and groaned. Revan hadn't had the manners to move and she resisted the urge to kick his unresponsive and unwelcome weight off of her. He was practically crushing her and he had no consideration at all. It seemed fitting for the Dark Lord of the Sith to be so stubborn, even in a coma. Managing to get all of Revan's two hundred and twenty pounds of bone and muscle off of her, Bastila forced Revan into a sitting position on the floor, pulling on his cloak to free it from his body. Revan's cloak ripped slightly but was otherwise free and Bastila blew a stray strand of hair from her eyes, her hair having come undone sometime between boarding the _Revenge_ and getting to the escape pod.

"I am far too nice to you and I doubt you'll even appreciate all of this."

Bastila spat sharply as she folded Revan's cloak into a makeshift pillow and laid him back gently onto the floor. Glancing at the Dark Lord's body and finally getting a good long look at his long, dark brown hair and his goatee, Bastila sighed. Aside from the long hair he looked like any other Dark Jedi and she took a moment to notice that his hair was almost black, likely from the effects of the darkside's corrupted power on his body. She knew Revan was supposed to be in his mid twenties but he almost looked like an old man at that moment, the black veins crossing his face looking more like wrinkles.

"I'd better clean all of this blood..."

Glancing down at the blood soaking the front of her brown robes, Bastila blanched and her lip curled slightly in disgust.

"I really don't see why I bother..."

Realizing she was still essentially on the _Revenge, _Bastila moved to the pod's control relay and pulled the release lever. A slight pull of inertia almost knocked her off her feet but she maintained her balance and activated the pod's distress beacon. Sith or no, the pod would be picked up by Republic ships looking for survivors. In the few battles they actually managed to win the Republic had been rather forthcoming to the captured Sith, giving them trials as traitors and state executions as opposed to blasted them into space dust or leaving them to rot. Rummaging through the pod's meager supplies, Bastila found a fairly decent medpack designed to treat light to medium combat wounds. Opening the case, the Padawan brushed her hair from her face, a smear of blood and ash marring her forehead and going unnoticed.

"What the bloody Hell is Bacta?"

Bastila asked her unconscious companion. Revan's response was expected and the Dark Lord merely breathed in and out steadily. Sighing, Bastila glanced at Revan's robes, swallowing before she shook off her unease and began unbuckling his belt and pulling open his shirt to treat any injuries she had seen. Pale gray skin coating a chiseled body that was toned to near-perfection looked back at the Padawan and she flushed with embarrassment.

"Its not enough that you bloody turn on us and kill billions, now you have to bloody make me check you for bloody wounds!"

It felt oddly therapeutic to vent her frustrations verbally and Bastila smiled to herself, satisfied. With a nod, she glanced back down at Revan and frowned. A bruise was forming on his chest and she knew why. A cracked rib from her efforts to resuscitate Revan and with a slight flush, the Padawan pulled on a sanitary glove from the medkit, feeling along the crack for its source. Too exhausted mentally to touch the Force, Bastila had to rely on a visual check and, preserving Revan's modesty and her own embarrassment decided any problems Revan had below his waist were problems he could deal with.

"I probably shouldn't have moved you if you have a head injury..."

Bastila muttered, her gray eyes narrowed in thought. Checking the mysterious compound labeled Bacta, Bastila read the label, seeing that it was meant to help the natural healing progress, like Kolto had. Not quite knowing what to make of the clear fluid, Bastila placed it in an injector and shot it directly into Revan's jugular. If the man could survive a bloody plasma explosion he could survive an injection. With some amusement, Bastila noticed Revan didn't seem to object. Closing Revan's tunic, Bastila used Revan's belt to straighten and tighten the area around Revan's damaged rib and hoped she had set it correctly. Head trauma aside, Bastila noticed Revan seemed to be fairly undamaged aside from a few superficial cuts and burns from the shrapnel. Feeling her own injuries begin to burn in protest, Bastila quietly treated her own wounds while Revan remained, her unconscious prisoner.

Twenty minutes of nothing had quickly whittled down Bastila's patience and the Padawan could still feel the Republic soldiers nearby, sweeping the debris for survivors. With a weary sigh the Padawan realized they were looking for Republic survivors before they would turn their efforts to the Sith. Glancing down at Revan, Bastila crossed her arms stubbornly over her chest and frowned. He had likely suffered permanent brain damage and if her exhausting efforts to keep Revan alive had only amounted to him being an unresponsive vegetable she would be sorely disappointed with the Force. Feeling her body's adrenaline levels lower and with nothing else to do, Bastila allowed her exhaustion to overcome her and closed her eyes, falling into a fitful rest.

Images bombarded Bastila as she became slowly aware of a partially lucid dream. She found she had control over the strange and frightening images bombarding her senses to a degree, but not entirely. It took only one horrifying minute to realize she was in Revan's subconscious mind. While she could move freely, Bastila found herself watching a situation from the outside, as if she were not in a body and looking down on a scene like some holocamera. With a tight frown, the Padawan tried to force herself to wake up and subsequently panicked when her body did not respond.

"Is the pod leaking atmosphere? Am I bloody dead or is this just some twisted way for Revan to destroy my mind?"

Bastila's musings were cut off as she saw an image of a crying child, filthy and from what she could tell horribly abused. In the dream Revan walked towards the child slowly, his features obscured by robes and armor that would later identify him as a Sith Lord but something did not feel malevolent from the vision and Bastila watched on, a look of pain on her face as she saw the child's condition.

"Empty the kriffin ships of soldiers. Send them down to maintain order on this world... **Now**."

Revan seemed to be shouting into a communicator, or perhaps to someone over his shoulder but before Bastila could understand anything, Revan had picked up the child, a small Cathar and was leaving the strangely urban surroundings behind. Briefly, two yellow, cat-like eyes had opened in panic and Revan's voice, though Bastila could not understand the Cathar words, were spoken in a soothing tone. The little girl seemed to relax in Revan's arms, her small hands clinging to his cloak and Bastila could feel the rage burning in Revan. The vision or dream or memory, Bastila had no clue ended and the Padawan was mercifully spared whatever terrible things Revan's rage would bring when she fell from her seat in the pod, her eyes snapping open and looking around in surprise. The stars and wreckage visible from the pod's single viewport streaked by and Bastila realized they were being hauled by a tractor beam. Checking the scanners and seeing a message from the pod's computer telling whoever was inside to get ready to fight, Bastila sighed in relief.

The _Endar Spire_ tractored in a Sith escape pod and a heavy contingent of guards stood at the landing bay, weapons at the ready as the pod was pulled into the ship's hangar through the energy field allowing the atmosphere to remain while objects such as ships could pass through unhindered. The energy field glowed blue briefly and dimmed. The blast doors sealed behind the pod and a squad of Republic soldiers advanced, their blaster rifles trained on the pod's single doorway. Hitting the external release, the pod's hatch blew away and clanged loudly as it landed on the deck. Climbing to the door the soldiers paused as they saw a girl, no older than twenty wearing brown robes and covered in blood with cool gray eyes that regarded them with impatience.

"Its about bloody time. Do you know how long I've been drifting around out here?"

It had been the better part of six hours after the Sith retreat before the Republic ships had been able to get to the Sith escape pods and no one really wanted to say anything. Everyone knew who Bastila Shan was and while they were all eternally grateful to the Force she was alive, they knew something was wrong. Looking down to the floor of the pod the soldier leading the squad frowned, shouldering his rifle and pulling his pistol, be trained it on the unmoving body cautiously. Seeing black robes the man the soldier thought nothing of it until he saw the red armored vambrances and the very distinct gauntlets worn by Darth Revan.

"Is he dead?"

The soldier asked in disbelief. While they all hated Darth Revan, the man's deeds during the Mandalorian wars and in what was beginning to be called the Jedi Civil war were almost awe-inspiring. No one could believe Revan could be killed but then, there he was, proof of the Dark Lord's mortality. Without waiting for an answer the soldier trained his blaster on Revan's head, his finger squeezing the trigger.

"Just to make sure."

The soldier sneered, his blast striking beside Revan's head when a small but firm hand pushed his blaster aside. Snapping his head to the source of the unwelcome interference, the soldier sneered at the Padawan.

"What the Hell are you doing? That bastard-"

Bastila's gray eyes grew cold and she forcefully moved the man from the pod.  
"Revan's remains are **not** to be maimed. The Council wants to study him and see what effects the darkside has had on him."

Veins appeared in the soldier's neck but he nodded stiffly and moved back from the pod.

"We set course for Dantooine immediately. There the **Jedi** will take Revan's remains to the Enclave. Until then I take full responsibility for them."

Looking at the girl who was supposedly the savior of the Republic, Trask Ulgo sighed and saluted. He had no choice and he had no idea about the Force or the Jedi or the Sith, just that they were powerful and normal guys like him never stood much of a chance against them.  
"Very well. Commander Onasi will be informed and we'll move out. Mind if we move it somewhere where the rest of the guys can get a good look?"

Trask asked imploringly. Bastila Shan glared coldly at the white-haired Republic soldier.

"Absolutely not. This is not some bloody freak show, this is a Jedi matter."

Surprised but not really caring, Trask saluted and turned with his squad to leave. If they weren't going to be doing clean up good riddance. With a heavy sigh, Bastila wondered briefly if she had made a mistake lying. She had felt a fury like none she had ever experienced when she saw the man nearly shoot, murder Revan. All of her efforts would have been in vain had she not reacted immediately to the warning in the Force and the Padawan took in a deep breath and exhaled. Sitting on the opening between the escape pod and the landing bay, Bastila cupped her hands together, resting her elbows on her knees and her chin in her palms and sighed. It would be hours before they reached Dantooine and she would have to keep watch.

Revan needed medical attention but the Padawan had a feeling the Dark Lord would suffer a mysterious complication if he was treated outside the care of the Jedi and she couldn't, wouldn't allow it. Like it or not, her fate was tied to Revan's and the dream she had briefly shared was frightening in its clarity. So much so that Bastila knew it was not merely a dream but a memory. Looking over her shoulder the exhausted Padawan glared at Revan before she cast cold glares as any Republic soldiers that neared the pod. She wouldn't let them harm Revan any further, not after all the bloody trouble the man had put her through.

"I should have let you die."

Bastila hissed, no real anger behind the statement, only exhaustion. Behind her, Revan's eyes opened slowly and the Dark Lord opened his mouth, trying to speak but choking on his own words. Eyes rolling back into his head, Darth Revan's hold on the waking world was lost. Bastila cast a paranoid glance behind her, thinking she had heard something. With a sigh the young woman leaned against the hatch's opening and made herself comfortable. Creating a Force-bond with Revan to keep him alive, to preserve the flicker of life left within him was no easy task and looking down at the grime and blood coating her Jedi robes, Bastila knew she was going to need a nice, long and warm shower when she got to Dantooine.

"Saving a life is always harder than taking one..."

A tingling sensation rose in the skin on Bastila's arms and the Padawan glanced back at Revan's unmoving body. She had not thought that at all and having heard Revan's voice enough on the holonet she knew what he sounded like.

"Are you still bloody alive?"

No answers came and the Padawan caught the very small rise and fall of Revan's chest, barely perceptible to one who didn't look and sighed. The man put a whole new meaning to the term to sleep like the dead. Thinking for a moment it was a remnant of her strange shared dream with Revan, Bastila crossed her arms over her chest and frowned thoughtfully. It didn't take long for Carth Onasi to make an appearance, though he was slightly more respectful than the other soldiers.

"He's dead then?"

Carth's voice held a hint of hope that Bastila did not want to crush. While she loathed lying to others she knew it was for the best.

"Darth Revan's hold on the galaxy has ended. I can only hope with his loss the Sith break..."

The Padawan's solemn voice started Carth out of his thoughts and the Republic soldier nodded, turning and leaving. He had no interest in seeing another mangled corpse. He only wanted to know if one of the Sith bastards responsible for his homeworld's destruction was dead. The loss of his wife and his son on Telos IV had burnt out all the hope he had left and all he cared about was killing Saul Karath and maybe, just maybe seeing the end of the Sith. Reading into Carth's stray thoughts, Bastila sighed heavily and looked back to Revan's unmoving body with a frown.

"For what its worth... I wanted you to come back to us... We- I believed in you Revan, during the war... Why did you betray us? Why did you leave us all and become-"

Bastila swallowed the tightness in her throat and looked away, sniffing and wiping her eyes. Carth's loss was a reminder, a slap in the face of what the Sith, what fallen Jedi and the Republic traitors were capable of and it was all because of the man she had given so much to save.  
"I could have left you... I should have let you die but that would have been too simple for you, Revan..."

Bastila said nothing more to Revan, knowing he wouldn't hear her and the Padawan remained vigilant, safeguarding the life of a monster and remembering her father's words to her. She could not forget love. Love was unconditional, love was patience and love was respect. Compassion, she supposed would have to do. She had shown enough compassion towards Revan in the last seven hours than most could show in an entire lifetime and somewhere, echoing through the bond Bastila had opened with Revan the Dark Lord felt what the Padawan felt, saw what she had done for him and in his coma, Revan's slack face cringed. Guilt was a feeling Revan had almost forgotten near the end of the Mandalorian wars but it seemed a young Padawan was reminding him of all his faults.

It had taken the _Endar Spire_ close to four hours to reach Dantooine after Carth Onasi's visit and Bastila could feel the exhaustion, ever presence since the _Revenge_ weighing down upon her. Unable to leave for fear of what would happen to Revan, Bastila waited patiently, hoping her Jedi superiors would hurry. It had taken the Council of Dantooine nearly half of another hour to organize and send up a transport and Bastila did not abandon her watch until she saw the small form of Jedi Master Vandar Tokare approaching with the other Dantooine Masters from the transport shuttle. Standing shakily, the Padawan straightened her robes and bowed to the Masters, checking through the force and visually to see if she could speak freely.

"He's still alive..."

Bastila began quietly. Vandar Tokare looked mildly surprised but his reaction was not as dramatic as Vrook Lamar's. The Dantooine and High Councillor's eyes had widened in disbelief and his jaw dropped slightly as he gaped.

"He couldn't have been taken alive..."

Bastila Shan's eyes narrowed slightly. Her orders had been to capture Revan, alive if at all possible and she had carried out her orders.

"He was grievously injured and I did all that I could. I had to hide the fact that he is alive from the Republic soldiers present for his own safety..."

Dorak, the archivist of the Council on Dantooine looked shocked but managed to contain himself as he took in Bastila's state. Her brown robes were caked with drying blood and stained with ash. Her face was pale and most telling of all was the bloodshot eyes. Clearing his throat and walking forward, Dorak stopped abruptly as Zhar Lestin, one of Revan's former Masters passed by him, a look of sheer disbelief on his face.

"This- this is quite an accomplishment, Padawan Shan..."

The Twi'lek Master said softly, his face a mixture of surprise and confusion. He, like Dorak had the opportunity to train Revan during his days as a Padawan and both knew of the man's stubborn will.

"Please, Masters. He needs medical attention immediately..."

Any confusion and questions came to an abrupt halt and the Jedi Masters moved to their transport that happened to be in the same landing bay and removed a stretcher. Dorak and Zhar helped to carry Revan's unmoving body from the Sith escape pod to the Jedi transport and within minutes were cleared to leave by the Republic crew. The transport reached Dantooine's surface rather quickly and Vrook Lamar moved from the craft to clear a way to the medical bay. No one outside of the Council, the Healers and Bastila needed to know of Revan. The condition of Revan's body as well as Bastila's statement of the _Endar_ _Spire_ crew's reaction was all the explanation he needed. While Vrook was bitter towards Revan for the war, he was still a Jedi and still needed to uphold the values of the Jedi Order.

Revan's body was moved quickly through the Enclave to keep prying eyes and curious Padawans from seeing. Luckily it was nighttime on Dantooine and only a few Jedi other than the Councillors remained awake. Taking the body into the medical wing of the Enclave, the Masters explained to the Healers in no simple terms that Revan's condition was to be kept a well-guarded secret. The Jedi Healers all agreed with the caution, all having taken an oath to respect and try to save another's life. Revan was moved from the stretcher and placed on a medical bed where he was quickly hooked up to machines and removed of his robes and previous bandaging. Bastila quickly excused herself and moved slowly to her quarters on Dantooine, almost unconsciously and entered her room. Discarding her robes, Bastila moved to the fresher and allowed the warm water of her shower to soothe her aching and weary body.

"Tomorrow is going to be one bloody long day..."

The Padawan sighed wearily, leaning her head against the side of her fresher and allowing her tears to fall. Her own Master had been one of the Jedi killed in the assault and while she had not been a particularly kind Jedi Master, Bastila's Master was the closest thing she had to a parental figure in her life since she had been accepted as a Padawan. Instead of simply giving in to the anger and attacking Revan, she had done the opposite, done what she was taught first from her own parents and later the Jedi. It had felt so right that she couldn't regret saving Revan but the Padawan wondered briefly if it was all worth it. What if he was going to spend the rest of his life in a coma or what if, Force-forbid he awoke and went on a rampage. With most of her questions remaining unanswered, Bastila Shan quietly dried herself, pulled on a set of sleeping robes and lay down in her bed. Closing her eyes the Padawan was asleep before she could even start to begin worrying about the Council meeting in the morning.

Darth Revan found himself in a rather odd position. In enemy territory, the Dark Lord of the Sith had but two options. Surrender or retreat. Opening his eyes slowly, Revan startled the Jedi Healers present by the simple act and the Dark Lord of the Sith blinked through exhausted and bloodshot brown eyes at the scene around him.

"Wha-"

An injection quickly brought an end to Revan's questions and he was again suppressed beneath a mask of unconsciousness. The Jedi Healers looked to one another before one managed to speak.

"We- we probably shouldn't have done that..."

Injecting a man who was awakening from a coma with a sedative was likely the worst possible thing to do and the Healers all silently agreed though none wanted to face Darth Revan, should he manifest himself.

"Go and find a neural disruptor collar. We can't risk this happening again..."

One of the Healers nodded to the order, leaving and returning several minutes later with a thin metal collar. The collar was fitted around Revan's neck and activated and the Dark Lord's thoughts were effectively scrambled for the time being. The Healers moved to clean and treat the wound on Revan's head, finding it to be a deep cut that ran between the base of Revan's skull and his spinal column. Treating the wound and sealing it with a kolto salve, Revan was turned on his back and two eyes opened halfway, revealing only bloodshot white.

"Bring a scanner and see if he's suffered any neural damage aside from the disruptor."

The lead Healer ordered. Too weak at the moment to break through the effects of the neural disruptor, Revan's mind remained encased in his unresponsive body as the Healers worked through most of the night to stabilize his condition and treat his wounds. As the sun rose the next morning on Dantooine the Healers had all but abandoned their work on Revan and only one remained, waiting to make her report to the Jedi Council. Zhar Lestin was the first Councillor to arrive and upon seeing the neural disruptor on Revan's neck asked its purpose.

"He- he briefly regained consciousness last night and we- we were forced to sedate him."

Eyes narrowing slightly at the Healer's obviously incomplete explanation, Zhar folded his arms over his chest and waited expectantly.

"He suffered a large amount of head trauma but the damage to his brain itself was relatively small. We've treated most of his physical injuries but we can only wait to see how complete his mind is once he awakens again..."

Zhar had his doubts as to being able to discern Revan's mental health when he gazed at the neutral disruptor. It was a distasteful but necessary precaution and one the Council had agreed on the previous evening.

"Very well, I will inform the other Masters and we will confer with the High Council on this matter. Keep an eye on him."

The Healer nodded, her Aqualish features tightening slightly in a grim look before she went back to monitoring Revan's condition. Revan hadn't so much as moved since being fitted with the neural disruptor and the Healer was beginning to worry. They may have been doing more damage than good but they simply could not risk Darth Revan being free on Dantooine.


	3. Chapter 2: Demise of a Dark Lord

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 2: Demise of a Dark Lord

The voices of the Jedi around him were dull echoes and Revan had no concept of time in the drug and pain induced delirium his mind was trapped within. Focusing his mind as best he could against the neural disruptor and the damage to his mind, Darth Revan felt a chill of uncertainty and unconsciously reached for Malak's presence. Malak was his support all these years but when he reached for Malak, Revan felt nothing. Pain laced his body and his mind but the Dark Lord struggled for thought, struggled for memory. Revan, if nothing else was a fighter and refused to die; not when he still had work to do.

"The High Council is sending Master Atris and Master Sunrider to help with the procedure... its risky but we think we can do it... The neural damage he's sustained is surprisingly minimal but.. it was localized to the region of his mind that dictates thought patterns... The procedure the High Council is considering is... well complex but it is possible, given his current state of mind."

Revan's skin was flushed, blood being returned to his body by means of machinery around him and the Dark Lord of the Sith opened unfocused brown eyes to see a set of blurred, brown shadows around him. Unable to struggle, Revan felt his body and his mind being restrained and his eyes slowly gained focus as he tensed, staring at the Jedi around him in confusion. Memories flashed before his eyes, most his own, some not. A young woman, more a girl really trying to pull his damaged and unconscious body from his dying ship, angry gray eyes looking more like shards of ice or stone glaring at him. Malak, the warning in the Force, the betrayal.  
"Can you hear me, Revan?"

Revan's head turned to the voice, though he only saw a red and brown blur. A look of confusion covered Revan's features as he tried to move, tried to focus but couldn't. The voice sounded familiar but he couldn't place it. As he started to panic, the voice spoke again, deep and calming.

"You've been fitted with a neural disruptor and restrained for your own, and our safety. What is the last thing you can remember?"

Revan's brow furrowed towards the blur. His mind could not identify the owner and he did not want to speak. A subtle pull through the Force and he spoke against his will.

"Betrayal."

Revan managed, swallowing the dryness and taste of blood in his throat. Trying to take in a deep breath a dull ache in his ribs stopped the gesture and Revan coughed violently a moment before he could regain control of his body's restrained movements. Opening and closing his hands, Revan blinked, his mind sorting out what he needed to know. He was restrained, being attacked and being forced to speak against his will.

"How are the Sith able to gather such a vast fleet in such a short amount of time?"

Zhar Lestin asked calmly, the Force behind his words to subtly coax Revan into answering truthfully. His old student was trying to fight he could tell but his mind was fairly in tact. It was likely Revan's brain damage only effected his body at the moment and the Jedi needed answers. Revan's lips thinned as a small sneer curled his mouth and he tried to stop himself from speaking. Once gray skin was taking on a healthy shade that looked almost tanned. Black strands of hair were returning to their natural shade of brownish-red and Revan's eyes, while unfocused were returning to their normal shade. The darkside was fleeting to Revan and he could not touch the Force in his state.

"Forge-"

Revan gnawed on the inside of his mouth, some primal urge telling him not to speak, not to give in. A muscle tightened along Revan's collarbone and pulled on the base of his chin and his neck and the Dark Lord's body trembled slightly as his skin took on a dark shade of red as his mental struggles became physical.

"No more answers, Jedi."

Revan snarled, his eyes focusing for the briefest of moments before the pain caused by his struggles subdued him. Breathing heavily, Revan lay on his back, staring at the once familiar sight of the Dantooine Enclave's healing ward ceiling. He needed to focus on something, anything.

"But what?"

A flicker through the Force, a curious probe from a waking consciousness and Revan found his anchor to fight. He did not understand where he was or how he had arrived but he knew he needed to fight. Drawing on the link he shared with the source of the curious probe, Revan fought against the effects of the neural disruptor, not seeing the shocked and slightly fearful look of his old teacher. The Twi'lek Jedi Master quickly called for the other Councillors to assist him as he moved to Revan's side, calling for the Aqualish Healer that stayed in charge of Revan's health to help him. The Jedi Healer moved to Revan's side, frowning at the shade of the man's skin but used the Force to calm Revan's mind. The Force-suggestion was blocked much to the Healer's disbelief and Revan's brown eyes snapped open, clarity in his eyes as he sneered viciously.

"You can't cage me."

The words were spoken in Mando'a, the Mandalorian's language and both Jedi present knew they were in trouble. Revan was acting on instincts, his mind was still unfocused by the disruptor and he was using something as a focus, something was allowing the Dark Lord of the Sith control over his own actions though, perhaps his mind was not in complete control of his body. Pulling against his restraints, Revan's well-build muscles tensed and the restraint holding his right arm snapped free. Immediately Revan pulled his other hand free, moving with a deadly grace only one with a lifetime of training could match. The Force focused in Zhar's hand and he used it to restrain Revan. The Jedi Master was surprised at Revan's physical display, not having sensed the man use the Force to fortify himself and he stared at the Dark Lord through wide eyes.

"What is going on here!"

Vrook Lamar practically shouted as he came into the room. Dorak and Vandar were close behind and Vrook took one look at Revan, standing and glaring at him and promptly ignited his lightsaber.

"Vrook, wait!"

Dorak shouted, stopping the other Jedi Councillor's actions. Vrook stared cooly at Revan but made no offensive moves and Revan cautiously measured his opponents, no recognition in his eyes.

"Your mind is damaged, Revan. Allow us to help-"

Revan cut off Dorak, his cold glare falling on the Jedi with clarity they didn't think possible with a neural disruptor.

"You think I am a fool? I know you've done this to me. Remove this device and then we'll see if you truly are-"

The Mando'a Revan was speaking stopped and the former Jedi Knight's brow furrowed as he spoke with a rough accent, similar to the accent of Mandalorians from Concord Dawn.

"Get this bloody collar off of me. **Now!**"

Revan managed briefly to get control of his senses and pulled a hand up, feeling the neutral disruptor. They had said he was injured, that he was suffering brain damage yet they fit him with a neural disruptor? And what procedure was the High Council wanting to take? A muscle twitched in Revan's cheek as he focused a cold glare on the Jedi Masters. The flickering through the Force he could sense through all his confusion, his anchor was strengthening though he didn't know why.

"You can't be trusted without it..."

Vandar stated calmly. Revan tilted his head to the side, sneering at the tiny Jedi.

"You act as if its your choice."

Using the Force, Revan pushed against the invisible restraints Zhar was holding him with and broke them. Pulling on the neural disruptor, Revan ignored the stabs of electricity the collar gave off as it tried to shock him into submission and ripped the device from his neck, his thoughts and memories clearing and a sense of vertigo enveloped him as he swayed and blinked, nausea pulling on his stomach. Thankfully the healers had partially dressed Revan's lower body in simple white trousers and Revan looked up at the Jedi around him with a slightly furrowed brow.

"Revan, calm down."

Zhar cautioned, his saber in his hand but still inactive. Revan's troubled expression did not leave him and he dropped the neural disruptor collar to the floor, absently lifting a hand to rub the back of his head. The Jedi were attacking him through the Force, trying to contain his power and he didn't fight, he couldn't. One thought, one feeling rose in Revan's heart and mind and he couldn't think straight, even without the neural disruptor.  
_"Betrayal."_

Malak, his friend, his brother, his apprentice had betrayed him. Emotions long abandoned welled within Revan's heart and he could feel them, burning his body and his mind. He had abandoned all emotions but rage, disgust and cold amusement long ago. Now, something completely alien welled up inside of him. It left a rather sour taste in his mouth.

"Don't you feel remorse? Don't you feel guilt for anything you've done? The **billions** of lives you've taken and the trillions you've ruined?"

Someone was shouting accusations at Revan but he didn't hear them, instead he felt a strange sense of detachment as he blinked against the fog of his mind and turned his eyes slowly to the Jedi.

"I feel nothing."

Quiet though his voice was, it carried through the room with the authority the shouting had commanded and the six sentients within the room all stood in silence. It was a lie and Revan knew it. He felt rage. Rage was his only friend, his only comfort now that his apprentice, his friend, his brother had betrayed him. Nothing mattered anymore, betrayal had ruined his plans for the galaxy. Whether he could escape from the Jedi and reclaim the Sith throne no longer mattered since Malak had sewn the seeds of doubt in the minds of the other Sith, ruining his image. In an Empire where you lived by your own strength alone and ruled with no mercy, image was everything. He was no longer some indestructible god for the Sith to fear, he was another fallen Jedi, like them who could be deposed by one man's insane actions. The deposed Dark Lord's body trembled visibly in his rage, his mind feeding emotions long buried till he felt, as he said to the Jedi, nothing. His brain simply could not process what was happening to him.

"We have to do something, fast."

Vrook stated grimly to his fellow Masters. Revan's power, if they could believe it was actually rising in his rage and the blank look on the Dark Lord's face was something that brought fear even to the heart of a Jedi Councillor. Veins began appearing against Revan's flushed skin and the Dark Lord of the Sith sneered in disgust at the Jedi before him. Raising his hand, Revan opened his mouth to spit out some cutting remark before his eyes lost focus and he felt himself gaging on some uncontrollable reflex. Pain laced his mind and he dropped heavily to his knees, his eyes rolling into the back of his head and the whites filling with red as his blood vessels burst. The Force energy he was giving off had damaged his bond with Bastila and, ironically the bond was what was keeping him alive, keeping him whole. The Bond was also the source of his unwelcome emotions.

Revan lapsed into a coma after his short but impressive display of willpower and strength but it was all for nothing in the end. The neural disruptor was abandoned in favor of sedatives and the deposed Dark Lord of the Sith spent the next week in a chemical induced coma while the Dantooine Council awaited the arrival of the High Councillors from Coruscant. Separating Revan from the Force was briefly considered but given the Sith's seemingly endless resources and the lack of resistance to Darth Malak's rule, the Jedi made another decision. A series of chemical injections would be used to degrade Revan's mind and he would be given a new identity. The new identity would be tied with Bastila Shan's due to the Force-bond used to keep Revan alive and through that bond the Jedi hoped to gain knowledge hidden deep within Revan's mind. The secrets he guarded so well against their failed attempts to coerce his mind.

Bastila Shan had been a bother, questioning the Masters and asking the Healers of Revan's condition but the knowledge that Revan was not so injured as they had initially believed was a fact the Council kept to themselves. They could not extinguish Revan's life as it would go against the Jedi Code but the Jedi could fit him with another identity, remove the monster that was and replace it with a man who could do what Revan was meant to do in the first place. Bastila's ignorance of the extent the Council was willing to go was due in no large part to her efforts. The Padawan had tried numerous times to see Revan but each time the Healers or the Council members would turn her away, stating that Revan's condition was grave and that he would be lucky to awaken at all.

A week after she had sensed Revan reaching for her mind through the bond, Bastila Shan felt an icy chill in her mind. Unable to concentrate, the Padawan broke from her meditation and looked for the source within the Force. Her search brought her to the sealed medical bay where Revan was being _treated_ and the Padawan was stopped at the door by two Jedi she had never seen before. The Padawan quickly identified the Jedi guards as Knights from Coruscant and after only a few questions, a white-haired Jedi Master had emerged from the medical bay, given the Padawan a blank look and walked away without a word. Several other Masters from Coruscant had passed and Bastila had managed to get the answer she dreaded from one of them.

"Revan's mind was too badly damaged for us to repair. Through scientific means or through the Force. As of yet the Council must decide what to do with Revan since clinically he is brain dead..."

Bastila Shan did not know what to think, the cold fingers piercing her mind had temporarily blocked her connection to the Force and the Padawan had simply accepted what the Councillor had told her as truth. Returning to her quarters, Bastila had laid on her bed and stared at the ceiling of her room without a single thought going through her mind, shocked slightly at the news but unable to feel anything. After an hour a feeling of disappointment had finally made its presence known and the Padawan rubbed her eyes wearily, curling up and passing out within moments. She couldn't dwell on Revan, she had to complete her training and become a Knight and then she had to defeat Malak. Malak was becoming a great threat according to the Masters, possible a greater threat than Darth Revan had been.

"How long do you expect these results to take?"

Vrook Lamar asked in a strangely solemn voice. Jedi Master Atris of the High Council sighed wearily, shaking her head.

"Since nearly the entire Council took part in the mindwipe and helped to build the new identity... I suppose time will tell but it could likely take months for Reva- for the subject's new identity to manifest completely. I suggest taking aside Padawan Shan for a time and having her speak to mind healers. We could very well have severed the bond between Revan and herself through our actions."

As she had begun explaining the facts Atris' voice had grown more mechanical and Vrook listened intently before nodding his agreement.

"Is there any danger Revan's original personality could resurface?"

Vrook's voice was flat, as if he expected the worst and Atris glanced at Revan's pale and unmoving form.

"None."

The Master decided. There was a small danger but the chance that Revan himself could have shielded his mind from their attempts while in a coma were so minute that Atris did not see it as worth mentioning. Leaving the room quietly, the High Councillor made her way towards her transport and swallowed the lump that seemed to be stuck in her throat. She had wanted to do something similar to Taya Kenobi, the only member of Revan's rogue Jedi to have returned from the Mandalorian wars to face them but the Council had ruled in favor of exile and while stripping Revan of the Force was possible, it seemed like such a waste with the power Revan had held. Still, buried beneath the anger and resentment of what Revan had done during and after the Mandalorian wars, Atris felt a cold hand pull on her heart as guilt weighed on her. Revan had been a friend, one of the brightest and most promising Jedi of the Order and he had been twisted by darkness and his end had come at the hands of beings who respected all life.

Within a week the shell of Darth Revan had opened his eyes and looked around his plain white room in confusion before a Jedi Healer, clad in brown robes told him he was recovering from a shuttle crash. Not remembering, the man had said as much and the Jedi assured him his memory problems would only be temporary. The man had nodded though he did not look convinced and slowly he began searching his own mind for memories. When he looked into his memories, something about them did not feel right, as if the memories there were intangible. The memory of a glass of Tarisian ale was clear, he could almost remember the taste, the smell of smoke or the sound of a swoop engine were focused with perfect clarity but somehow the memories of his life seemed simply unreal, as if they had not happened to him.

Questions, thousands of them had been asked and the man had patiently and later impatiently answered them all. For three months he was practically a prisoner of the Jedi and he began to doubt if he were really who they said he was. Having access to a small amount of information in a medical terminal in his room the man had bypassed the Jedi's security with a skill he didn't even remember learning and had checked his records in the Republic. To say his record was impressive was a lie and the man sighed in frustration as he read the two paragraphs of Basic that made up his life.

"Something isn't right..."

The voice even sounded wrong. Remembering the way people on Deralia had spoken, the man knew his voice, a rough variant of a Core world's refined and cultured accent was not right. Staring at his picture contained in his service record the man frowned again. Military procedure required all new recruits to have clean-shaven faces and no hair longer than a standard recruit's cut and yet his hair reached his shoulders and his goatee, while very well trimmed in the photo did not scream military at him.

"I look more like a bloody Jedi Knight or a politician..."

Sighing in frustration, Tauryn Katarn; or so he'd been told was his name, leaned back in the chair beside the terminal and frowned. According to his file he was twenty-six years old and had joined the Republic Navy as a soldier. He was on leave after four years in the service and his transport had been heavily damaged in a micro-meteor storm. Gaps existed in the man's mind and the Jedi Healers assured him it was normal for his condition but he couldn't simply accept the answer, he needed proof and proof was not forthcoming.

"They're lying."

Tauryn Katarn decided, moving around the room slowly and searching his memories. He knew a great many languages but he couldn't recall ever learning them. He knew how to fight but he couldn't remember training and he knew deep down, something was terribly wrong with him. Wary of the Jedi, the man acted completely pleasant to the Jedi that spoke to him, voicing concerns though never challenging their word and he slowly began remembering things that shouldn't have happened, couldn't have happened. It had started as dreams, images and flashes brought on by a smell or a touch or just the way he stood. More confused than anything else the man played along with the Jedi, pretending he was fine and hiding behind a mask of sarcasm and immature humor. Making a game of frustrating the Jedi speaking to him, the man spent most of his _recovery_ time alone, searching the depths of his memories to find the holes that made him feel like a stranger to his own body.

The most telling of the man's memories were those of his family. He vaguely remembered a childhood, his awkward adolescent years and then his family's death. Thinking back on his family's death the man wore an expression of confusion. There was no feeling at all. Something was telling him to be sad, telling him to mourn but there was nothing behind the events, nothing that actually _felt_ real. It was at that point, four months following his supposed shuttle crash that the man felt the slow cold fingers of his old memories resurfacing. Revan had indeed done the impossible and buried his memories deep within his mind as Atris had secretly feared but deemed impossible.

At first it felt like an eggshell that had cracked slightly, leaking memories in a gentle stream before it cracked more and finally poured into his mind completely. For an entire day, Revan said nothing to the Jedi speaking to him, merely laying in his bed and staring at them through blank brown eyes. It took a day for Revan to sort through the thoughts of Tauryn Katarn and learn how to act like the man he was supposed to and all the Jedi saw, all the Jedi knew of this was a steady increase in the man's Force presence. None suspected Revan had regained his thoughts, joined with the programmed identity and was playing the Jedi. None except for Revan himself.

In the four months following Revan's _death_ Bastila Shan had been sent to Coruscant to speak with mind healers over the effect the bond would have on her and there she honed and perfected her skill with a two-bladed lightsaber and her skill in Battle Meditation. In four months Bastila had finally overcome the emotional break her experiences on Darth Revan's flagship had forced her to face and the Jedi Council, after four months of watching; deemed her fit to return to the front. Wanting to do her part and ever the obedient apprentice, Bastila had agreed. With no official Master, Bastila was trained much in the same way Revan himself had been trained as a Jedi, through many Jedi Masters and while she remained a Padawan, the young woman's skill increased dramatically with the wealth of new knowledge opened up to her through more than one teacher.

Two months would follow of Bastila being sent with large Republic battle groups to fight off Darth Malak's increasingly violent assaults against the Republic. Where Darth Revan had exercised restraint, targeting military targets and only targeting civilians if they were in the general area of a military target or hiding resistance groups, Darth Malak annihilated entire worlds. The devastation of Telos IV had been only the start and in six months of being the Dark Lord of the Sith, Malak had destroyed more worlds than Darth Revan and the Mandalorians combined. Battle Meditation was holding the Sith at bay, but the Jedi Council was beginning to see that it was merely buying them time and not victory. The Sith's endless resources would eventually overwhelm the Jedi and the Republic by sheer number and the Jedi turned their eyes to what had once been Darth Revan for answers.

The Dantooine Council had debated time and again the role Revan's mindwiped personality should play and it was eventually decided to put him on the front lines, within Bastila's battle group to see if it triggered any subconscious memories along the faded bond Revan and Bastila shared. The Dantooine Council informed the High Council of Coruscant of their plan and the Councils agreed, though several Councillors protested. The proper orders were made and soon orders were sent from the Republic Military Command on Coruscant to the Dantooine Jedi Enclave that Ensign Tauryn Katarn was being recalled for a special mission.

Revan stared at the orders and the clean bill of health the Jedi had issued him days apart from one another and while his face remained expressionless, sneered in his mind. He knew exactly what the Jedi were trying to do and while he had been practically a prisoner for six months he never slipped, never used the Force in excess and he trained both his body and his mind for the new role they would be falling into. No longer did he respond to the name Revan unless it was directed to him and the false name, the name of the pawn as he called it was etched firmly into his mind. Biding his time, Revan pondered the freedoms he would have on a Republic cruiser as compared to his prison on Dantooine and accepted the orders.

"I shall remember all that you've done for me, Master Jedi."

Revan bowed to the Aqualish Jedi Healer that had been hand-selected to watch him in the six months he _recovered_ and made a mental note to kill the woman at a later date. The embarrassment, the shame and the anger were still there, hidden well and Revan learned to carefully hide and control his raging emotions. He had calmed significantly over time and patiently waited for an opening to make his escape and as Revan stepped into a Republic transport that would take him to the _Endar Spire,_ the former Dark Lord of the Sith smirked. Away from the prying eyes of the Dantooine Masters and the threat of their Enclave's fighters, Revan was free to do as he pleased.

Thinking of the young woman that had saved him from Malak's betrayal, Revan pondered the meaning of the bond he knew existed and wondered of his own place in the galaxy. The time of Darth Revan had ended, of that he was sure but that didn't mean he had to abandon the war completely. Revan knew the True Sith were still out there and while his hands were tied on Dantooine, he knew he would have to grow stronger if he were to face Malak head-on. Malak had no doubt discovered the Star Forge's unique ability to drain Force-energy and had likely attempted to harness the power to make himself stronger. Revan did not wish to tempt fate, knowing the same actions had led to the downfall of the Infinite Empire but he knew he had spent six months at a significantly diminished training rate and that he would have to find somewhere private and isolated to begin truly wielding the Force once more. A mission far from the Jedi Temple and Enclaves seemed like such a place and Revan leaned back in his seat as the shuttle rose from Dantooine and jumped into hyperspace to take him to Coruscant and the _Endar Spire_. He only had to be patient.


	4. Chapter 3: Familiar Faces

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 3: Familiar Faces

Ensign Trask Ulgo sighed wearily as he went through the checklist of his cabin to prepare it for a bunkmate. By special order from Republic military command they were bringing in a specialist who had been given the rank of Ensign. Reviewing his bunkmate's file, Trask thought it looked more like a list than a service record. The man who would be his bunkmate had been in the military for four years and had seen the end of the Mandalorians wars, he spoke a nearly ridiculous amount of alien languages and his skills in combat, mechanics and command seemed almost impossible for just one man. Staring at the man's picture, Trask couldn't help but feel a sense of deja vu before he shook his head and grabbed his blaster pistol. He was on watch and the room checked out. He'd do his patrol shift and return and likely never see the man the entire mission. They worked opposite shifts so Trask knew his only interaction with the other man would be if there was a crisis situation.

Tauryn Katarn, former known as Darth Revan calmly approached the landing pad holding the Republic cruiser _Endar Spire. _Glancing up at the ship, Revan was less than impressed but raised a brow at the modifications to the ship. It looked like the main blaster cannon turrets were fixed in a forward position and while most of the naval battles were done in strict formations, Revan knew the ship would have to maneuver to make up for its lack of a field of fire. Something he had always hated about Republic cruisers. They had the firepower of a heavy battle frigate but lacked the flexibility the three dimensions of space combat often required. The Sith Interdictor class battle cruisers were much more to his liking. Interdictor vessels had multiple weapons platforms to make up for their lack of maneuverability and were much more heavily shielded. The guns on the Sith ships were smaller, but Revan knew just how effective they were when they worked in batteries, concentrating groups of six to eight guns on the more lightly armored Republic ships while the Republic ships could only answer with half to a third the amount.

Tactical analysis aside, Revan decided there were worse ships to be stationed on and shouldered his pack, calmly taking his place in the line of soldiers preparing to enter the ship. Republic Marines and Naval officers stood ahead of him and Revan sighed, glancing to his side and freezing. A group of ten Jedi, distinguishable in their brown cloaks were moving past the line. The Jedi walked along the side of the line and Revan's eyes connected with the gray eyes of one of the Jedi as she glanced at him. The Jedi's eyes quickly turned away but not before Revan could feel the echo of her thoughts through the bond he shared with the young Jedi.

_"I should have known there was a catch..."_

Revan mentally chastised himself. It had been six months and he had thought the Jedi might have let him off on his own for a while, let him get used to the idea of fighting beside Republic soldiers before they stepped up their plans for him a notch and made him fight alongside Jedi but it appeared his plans were ruined. He couldn't openly use the Force if nearly a dozen Jedi were on the same ship and he couldn't very well not show up when one of the Jedi had spotted him. Revan recognized Bastila's eyes immediately and the Dark Lord felt something strange stir in his chest. She had saved him, fought for all she was worth to keep him alive and she didn't have to, she shouldn't even have tried. It was almost humbling to Revan that such compassion could exist and he couldn't help but admire the young woman's selflessness. She had spirit and strength, qualities that most Mandalorians would have loved in their women.

Smashing the errant thought, Revan calmly waited in line, catching the young Jedi Padawan occasionally glancing back towards him. Unwelcome emotions; guilt, respect, confusion, even a small amount of fascination and protectiveness worked its way into Revan's heart and the deposed Dark Lord of the Sith stared at the Padawan, a small furrow to his brow and a frown pulling his features slightly as he measured the woman who had saved his life. Readjusting his pack as it slowly began sliding down his shoulder, Revan straightened his stance and came to a decision then and there. If he couldn't get away from the Jedi's little games he'd see just exactly where they were going. Revan was curious as to how the Jedi would try to use the bond and having no immediate goals aside from reestablishing his once strong connection to the Force and ruining whatever plans the Jedi had for him, Revan decided to play along.

_"Maybe it will provide me the opportunity to repay Malak for his betrayal."_

A spike in anger and a sharp glance from several of the Jedi in his general direction caused Revan to increase his mental shielding. He needed to look normal, in control and he couldn't let the dark hatred he harbored towards Malak's actions compromise his plans. With a sigh, Revan realized his plans were not very likely to be happening in the near future and resigned himself to playing his role in whatever game the Jedi were forcing him into. Frustrated, but feeling little in the way of true anger towards the Jedi's game, Revan was more curious as to the extent of deceit the Jedi could turn to. It would stave off boredom and unwelcome emotions. He had never been good with dealing with emotions that lacked the clarity of anger. It had made him the perfect Mandalorian and the perfect Jedi for a time.

Half an hour later, Revan found himself in his quarters and stared blankly at the second bunk. He had a bunkmate and it was likely the other soldier was on duty. Moving to a small locker, Revan stowed away his gear, pulling his weapons from the pack. Grabbing a cleaning kit, Revan seated himself in a chair and laid his vibroblade and his blaster rifle on the table. Opening the kit, Revan unbuttoned the sleeves of his uniform and rolled them up before he took apart his blaster rifle and began cleaning it.

"All hands, prepare for lift off. Hyperspace jump in ten minutes."

Revan made a brief mental note before he turned his attention back to his weapon. The Endar Spire was three hours en route to its destination when Revan finally put his blaster rifle back in his locker and moved to the fresher to wash his hands. A few illegal modifications had turned the relatively medium powered blaster rifle into a cut down version of a Mandalorian heavy assault cannon and Revan came out of the fresher with a towel, wiping down the shiny metal of his vibroblade before he checked the power cells and the razor sharp edge. Nodding in satisfaction, Revan sheathed the blade carefully, testing the give of the scabbard before placing the weapon into his locker and sealing it. Moving to his bed, Revan unfastened the buckles to his armored breastplate and stripped down to his sleepwear. Setting the armor neatly beside his bed, Revan laid down, crossing his arms behind his head and stared blankly at the ceiling above him. Sighing, Revan closed his eyes and settled into a light sleep, sensing that the Force was stirring, preparing for something and knowing he had to be well-rested for whatever it threw at him.

Commander Carth Onasi brushed a hand through his hair wearily as he stared through the front viewport of the _Endar Spire_. The Republic cruiser had been traveling from Coruscant towards the general direction of the old Taris trading routes. A Republic strike force was waiting at Rodia, having stopped for supplies on Corellia; the fleet was waiting for Bastila Shan. The young Padawan's Battle Meditation was going to be used to try to gain a foothold in the Sith's holdings in the Abrion sector and they hoped to be able to free the Bothans from Darth Malak's grasp. Crossing his arms as he walked over to the navigator's console, Carth furrowed his brow and turned to the young soldier manning the helm.

"Are you picking up any strange gravity readings?"

The Republic Lieutenant at the helm nodded, double checking to confirm.

"Confirmed on those readings, Commander. Shall I wake the Captain?"  
Carth nodded, adding.

"The Jedi too."

The Lieutenant nodded and turned back to his station while Carth rubbed his face, shaking his head and trying to wake up. It had been six hours into the flight and his shift was nearing its end but he'd only seen gravitational readings fluctuate like that on three occasions. Once when his ship had nearly flown into the Maw Cluster years before, once when the Mandalorians had used their tractor beams to haul a massive asteroid on a Republic reinforcement route to pull the supply ships out of hyperspace and the most likely, and worst a Sith Interdictor ship. As if confirming his fears, the _Endar_ _Spire's _viewport flashed from the steady blue-white hyperspace stream to a starfield. Inertia pulled on the ship, causing the hull to groan in protest before the dampeners stabilized and Carth pinched the bridge of his nose with a sigh as he spotted a small group of Sith capitol ships bearing down on them.

"Sir, we may be able to lose them in a large gravity well. Maybe nullify the effects of their Interdictor generators?"

Carth nodded his agreement, moving to the ship's internal communications relay as the alarms sounded. Several smaller Republic escort ships were also pulled from hyperspace and the communications officer relayed tactical data while Carth sounded the call to arms.

"Attention all hands, this is Commander Onasi. We've been pulled out of hyperspace by a Sith battle fleet, all hands to battle stations, this is no drill."

The internal alarms blared loudly and Carth was soon joined on the bridge by the ship's Captain, Bastila Shan and four of the Jedi accompanying her on her mission.

"What can you report, Carth?"

Captain Larn Sel'vas, a red-skinned Devaronian asked, his eyes staring calmly ahead towards the battle. Carth quickly filled the Captain in on their plans and Bastila knelt on the floor, closing her eyes and calling the Force around her. Glancing at the Jedi, Carth rose a brow but said nothing as Bastila's Battle Meditation slowly began to take effect on the small Republic convoy.  
"I'll try as best I can but-"

Bastila's concentration was broken as she sensed a dark presence within the Force.  
"Darth Malak..."

The Padawan stated, much to Carth's horror. The _Endar Spire_ turned sharply towards the distant speck of Taris as it raced away from the massive Sith fleet that moved to cut off their escape.

"This is going to get ugly..."

Carth muttered, knowing they stood no real chance. It looked as if the entire of the Sith fleet under Malak had moved from their holdings in Bothan space to ambush them.  
"Get us as close to Taris as possible. We may be able to stand a chance of getting our escape pods to the surface if we close in."

Captain Larn ordered. Carth and Bastila agreed and the Padawan returned to her meditation while Carth asked the Jedi if they could help guard the bridge.  
"I have a feeling we're going to have some company before this is over."

Carth muttered. The Sith had known they were coming which meant there was a leak in the Republic's supposedly clear lines of communication. Scowling at the thought of more traitors, Carth turned his attention to getting the crew roused before it was too late.

Revan calmly opened his eyes and frowned. A loud explosion reverberating along the hull made the former Dark Lord's frown deepen and Revan sat up slowly, subtly reaching out in the Force to sense Malak nearby. The frown on Revan's face vanished slowly as Revan stood, pulling on his uniform and his armor before opening his locker. His guess had been right and Malak had significantly increased in his power in the six months since taking the Sith throne from him and Revan knew he was sorely prepared to face Malak so soon. His hold over the Force, while strong had weakened from lack of use and he needed to retrain his mind and his body to fight like a Jedi and not like a soldier. Fastening his vibrosword and its scabbard to his waist, Revan pulled his modified blaster rifle from his locker in time to turn around and frown at the man entering his quarters. Raising his weapon to the ready, Revan froze at the sight of a white-haired man with blue eyes in a Republic uniform and armor.  
"Good you're awake! We've been ambushed by a Sith battle fleet. Hurry up we don't have much time!"

Revan's blaster rifle did not lower and he stared at the man with a blank face. A flickering through the back of his mind and a memory not his own invaded Revan's senses and his jaw clenched. The image of the same man, standing in the doorway of a pod and aiming the same pistol he was brandishing at his head entered Revan's mind. A small hand, not his own pushed the weapon aside as it discharged and Revan blinked slowly against the flash of the memory, his hands tightening on his blaster rifle as it remained trained on Trask's chest.

"Who are you?"

Revan asked harshly. Trask looked slightly taken aback by the venom in Revan's voice and rose his hands to the side placatingly.

"I'm Trask Ulgo, Ensign with the Republic fleet. I'm your bunkmate here on the _Endar Spire._ We work opposite shifts, I guess that's why you haven't seen me before... Now hurry up, we have to find Bastila! We've got to make sure she makes it off the ship alive."

Revan's eyes narrowed slightly. It was obvious the man didn't recognize him and slowly, Revan lowered his blaster rifle. It was likely the crew quarters were monitored and he couldn't afford to blow his cover, yet.

"Fine, lets move."

Trask nodded appreciatively at the no-nonsense tone in his bunkmate's voice. The sooner they got Bastila off the ship, the more likely it was for them to survive. Moving to the door, Trask entered his access code, bypassing the security lockdown and moved forward, his blaster pistol at the ready while his bunkmate moved cautiously behind, his blaster rifle lowered to the deck. A beep on both soldier's comms drew their attention to the general quarters announcement from Carth Onasi and Trask turned to explain things to his bunkmate. Revan rose a brow at how much time was being wasted and moved to the next door, calmly slicing the lock while Trask trailed off, frowning at him.

"We don't have time. I understand that I am new on this ship but we need to move. Now."

Revan's voice snapped Trask from his annoyance at the man's rude behavior and he nodded his agreement. However rude the man was being they had a job to do and they needed to do it fast. Trask moved to the door just as it opened, peering out slowly and pulling his head back as he spotted a fellow Republic soldier getting gunned down by two Sith troopers.

"These Sith must be the advanced boarding party..."

The white-haired soldier muttered, collecting himself before he moved from his cover with a shout.

"For the Republic!"

Revan froze, watching the sheer stupidity unfold before he sighed and leaned out from his cover, placing two clean shots into each Sith trooper's chests. It would have been nice for Trask to exercise some caution and let him know exactly how many Sith they were up against but then, Revan decided it made life interesting to have someone who was recklessly suicidal nearby.

_"Maybe the Sith will be busy killing him while I slip past."_

Smirking at the thought of his problems solving themselves, Revan moved to the next door, watching as Trask moved to open the seal. The doors opened and immediately two Sith turned their weapons to the doorway, one being caught in the faceplate by Trask's blaster bolt and the other taking a shot in the neck and the shoulder from Revan's rifle. Moving cautiously into the room, Revan lowered his left hand to the neck of a Republic soldier lying on the ground while keeping his right hand on his weapon.  
"He's gone."

Revan stated to Trask who cursed and holstered his pistol. The white-haired soldier knelt beside the body of the Sith trooper he had killed and pulled two grenades from the Sith's belt, inspecting them closely before attaching one to his belt and handing one to Revan. Revan accepted the frag grenade, seeing that the Sith he had killed was carrying nothing too useful. Moving to the next set of doors, Revan appreciated Trask's caution as the soldier waited for him to take position. Falling into a familiar pattern of attack and cover, the Republic soldier opened the door while Revan watched their backs.

"Hallway is clear but I hear fighting further down."

Trask whispered. Revan nodded silently motioning for Trask to watch the rear as he moved forward, hugging the right side to get a better field of vision around the curve in the corridor. Leaning slowly out from his cover, Revan spotted several Sith and Republic soldiers locked in a melee with vibroblades and saw a Republic soldier not too far from his position behind a pile of cargo containers, firing on Sith who utilized similar cover. Before he could even make a move to help, Revan saw a Sith behind the cargo container toss a frag grenade into the melee which promptly exploded and took out all the Sith and Republic soldiers that were fighting. The blast wounded the Republic soldier that was using the cargo containers nearby for cover and Revan pulled back slowly as he saw a Sith approaching the downed Republic soldier with an unsheathed vibroblade.

"Four Sith. One with a vibrosword in the open and three behind some cover."

Trask and Revan heard the dying scream of the wounded Republic soldier and both sighed before Revan motioned to Trask's belt where the looted grenade rested. Trask nodded grimly, a muscle playing in his jaw and hatred for the Sith burning in his eyes as he and Revan both moved from their cover to throw two frag grenades at the entrenched Sith. Twin explosions roared in the corridor as Revan and Trask moved from their cover and approached the wounded Sith. Trask immediately shot two of the wounded Sith in the heads, ending their struggles while Revan checked the bodies of the Republic soldiers. None were alive and Revan moved to the next corridor, watching the rear as Trask moved ahead. Trask cursed and turned to Revan after glancing down the hallway.

"Secondary access to the bridge is cut off. We're going to have to go in through the center."

Revan nodded grimly, knowing it meant they were in for a fight. Moving to the sealed doors that led to the chamber adjacent to the bridge, Revan paused, motioning for Trask to wait. The sound of hisses and hums echoed through the metal doorway and Revan shook his head in annoyance, handing Trask his rifle and pulling his vibroblade.

"If that's a Dark Jedi in there we don't stand a chance!"  
Trask sounded worried but Revan merely turned from the door to his bunkmate, a blank look on his face.

"What choice do we have? Cover me in case there's any Sith troopers and I'll see what I can do."

Trask nodded, silently admiring the man's bravery and shouldered Revan's blaster rifle. The seal on the door hissed and slid open and Trask sighed in relief as he spotted a female Jedi in cream-colored robes dueling with a Dark Jedi. That relief vanished when he saw his companion moving ahead and Trask was quick to catch up, spotting two Sith troopers watching the duel. Two precise shots to each Sith ended their lives and Trask turned to see his bunkmate stalking towards the Dark Jedi and the Jedi Knight. The Dark Jedi sensed the approach and glanced at the approaching Republic soldier, his eyes widening when the soldier charged and thrust a gleaming vibroblade for his throat. Hastily blocking the strike, the Dark Jedi was open for the Jedi's retaliatory strike and a blue lightsaber pierced his chest, ending his life.

"You could have been killed. You should be more careful in the future."

The Jedi, a young human woman panted. Revan gave the Jedi a patient look before he cursed, grabbing the lapels of the Jedi's robe and pulling her back. A conduit exploded, sending shrapnel towards the woman and she fell limply against Revan, her eyes rolling back into her head as she lost consciousness. Revan lowered the Jedi to the deck, checking her pulse and cursing.

"She's still alive but badly wounded and unconscious."

Trask cursed as well, looking behind him for any Sith approaching them from the rear.

"I don't have much medical training... can you do anything for her?"

Trask asked, his eyes searching for threats and his heart pounding. Revan frowned, looking around for anything useful and spotting an emergency medpack on one of the dead Sith trooper's belts. Pulling the Jedi's lightsaber from her hand, Revan attached it to the young woman's belt and turned her so he could strip her of her cloak. Loosening the Jedi's belt, Revan lifted her tunic, stopping to spare her modesty and examined the wounds with a critical eye.

"I can't be certain but it looks as if she may have punctured a lung. Most of the cuts are superficial so I'll clean and dress them as quickly as I can."

Trask nodded readily, thankful for his bunkmate's skill. Revan quickly cleaned and applied kolto gel to each cut before he pulled a small set of tweezers from the kit and began removing the shrapnel that he could see. A particularly large shard had pierced the Jedi's lung and Revan moved quickly to seal off the damage, turning the woman on her back and removing a small tube from the pack. Opening the top of the Jedi's tunic, Revan pressed the metal tube into her chest, piercing her chest cavity and a small rush of air mixed with blood shot through the tube, spraying Revan's face. Revan calmly wiped his face on his sleeve and lowered his head to the woman's chest, listening to the wheezing as she breathed.  
"I've done what I can but she needs a surgeon."

Revan stated, catching Trask's curious look.  
"Watch her, I'm going to try to clear the bridge."

Trask nodded to Revan, moving to cover the Jedi while Revan approached the bridge and drew the Force lightly around him. Spotting the dead Dark Jedi's lightsaber, Revan knelt to collect the weapon and tested its weight before shaking his head and attaching it to his belt. It'd been six months since he'd used a lightsaber and he wasn't eager to jump into the fray with one just yet. If the monitors recorded him using a lightsaber, his ride off the Republic ship would likely not be there when he arrived. Opening the doors to the bridge, Revan immediately crouched and vaulted himself forward, his vibroblade slicing through the lower portion of one Sith's armor while he immediately spun, drawing the blade upward against the second Sith guarding the bridge's entrance. The Sith's blaster rifle stopped Revan from completely severing the arm and the former Dark Lord slashed the screaming Sith cleanly across the throat before he turned to the chaos on the bridge.

_"What a bloody mess."_

Seeing a dead Devaronian in a Republic Captain's uniform lying in the midst of half a dozen Sith and Republic soldiers locked in a deadly melee, Revan frowned as a warning shot through the Force. Moving back, Revan saw a stray blaster bolt from a Sith fighter strike the forward section of the bridge, causing the glass to shatter as the Sith and Republic soldiers were pulled into the vacuum of space. A blast door lowered immediately and Revan let go of the console he had been bracing himself against. Moving to check the bridge for more intruders, Revan sighed, moving back to Trask.

"Captain and the bridge crew are dead. Bridge is clear and it looks like the other Jedi managed to get through."

Giving a meaningful look to the unconscious and wounded Jedi, Revan conveyed his thoughts to Trask silently. The wounded Jedi had stayed behind to buy the other Jedi time to escape. Setting his jaw, Trask nodded, moving to carry the Jedi before Revan shook his head and lifted the woman gently in his arms. Whatever his opinion on Jedi, Revan knew he was going to need all the help he could get at the moment and while the Jedi slowed him down for the time being he knew it wouldn't be that way for long.  
"I can carry her, keep that rifle at the ready."

Trask gave Revan a respectful look and nodded once before he moved to the bridge. Revan moved slowly with the wounded Jedi, flinching as he sensed her pain. Normally he'd relish the pain but the bond he shared with Bastila was burning brightly in his mind, searing his apathy away and leaving the facts. This was a war of his creation that could have possibly been avoided. Grinding his teeth together, Revan shifted the Jedi in his arms slightly to take the pressure from her wound and moved to the next set of doors on the opposite end of the bridge. Trask entered the security code and the doors opened, allowing all three humans to pass to the starboard side of the _Endar Spire._

"You did good work back there."

Trask stated, admiration in his voice, Revan grunted, his hatred of the man still at the forefront of his mind though he was feeling a small amount of respect for the soldier's efficiency. Opening the security door that led towards the escape pods, Trask moved first to make certain it was clear before he turned back to Revan, waving him in. Revan moved quickly, trying not to jostle the Jedi in his arms before he felt a flickering on the edge of his senses. Sensing a disturbance in the Force, Revan stopped abruptly, his head snapping to a doorway behind him a moment before it opened to reveal Darth Bandon, apprentice to Darth Malak. Shifting the weight of the Jedi in his arms, Revan prepared to set her down and attack Bandon when suddenly, Trask cursed, shouting for him to get away as he rushed the Dark Jedi. Trask palmed the security lock on the doorway as he passed, cutting off Revan's options and the former Dark Lord of the Sith stared at the sealed doorway, frowning.

_"If he'd known who he just saved I'd bet he would regret that."_

Respecting the man's foolish bravery, Revan turned from the scene and moved as swiftly as he could, pausing as his communicator vibrated. Switching on the small screen, Revan got a good look at Carth Onasi and frowned.

"What is it?"

Revan asked, knowing the reason had to be good to risk interrupting his journey through the dying ship. Carth, having seen over the ship's monitors what was going on filled Revan in.

"I've been tracking you on the ship's monitors and I noticed there's a Sith guarding the corridor ahead of you. You're going to have to find some way around him now that you're out a blaster."

Pleased that his choice to spare Trask had worked out so well in his favor Revan acknowledge Carth and deactivated his comm. He couldn't very well use the Force if the Republic soldier was watching. He knew the man would jettison any escape pods remaining instead of risking a Sith infiltrator and Revan gently laid his Jedi burden to the floor, adjusting her so she could breath freely and studied the young woman a moment. She had honey-blonde hair, pale skin and she looked to be in her late twenties, near his age if he could be certain. Revan did not recognize the Jedi personally and was grateful, knowing his ability to blend in with the Jedi and Carth once they got off the ship would require his identity to remain a secret. Casting a glance behind him to make sure Bandon was not pursuing, Revan moved slowly into the corridor.

The Sith guarding the corridor was armed with a blaster rifle and without a shield, Revan knew he needed something to distract the Sith. Glancing down at his belt, Revan spotted the lightsaber he had taken from the fallen Sith and smirked. Throwing a lightsaber didn't require much in the way of Force powers so much as guiding it did and he knew it would remain active until deactivated. Getting as close as he could to the curve in the corridor, Revan pulled the lightsaber from his belt and pressed the switch, a crimson blade snapping to life with a hiss.

Carth Onasi watched from the small monitor, his brow rising as he saw who the ship's log stated was Tauryn Katarn toss a Sith lightsaber at the Sith guard. The guard threw himself to the ground while the lightsaber spun through the air, imbedding itself in the corridor about three fourths of the way between where Revan had thrown it to where the guard was. Realizing he wasn't going to be skewered on a lightsaber the Sith looked up, cursing as he hastily fired three shots at the rapidly approaching opponent.  
Revan sprinted towards the cowering Sith, his vibroblade raised and was less that ten yards to the Sith before he started firing. Diving and rolling, Revan avoided two of the shots and was grazed by the third before he drove his vibroblade deep into the Sith's chest, the force behind his attack piercing the Sith's armored breastplate. As the Sith's life left him, Revan pulled his blade free, wiping it casually on the Sith's corpse as he sheathed the weapon and checked his wound. A simple burn along his left arm that tore a gash along his uniform and his skin. Seeing there was no muscle damage Revan scowled slightly at the wound before lifting the Sith's blaster rifle and moving to the nearby door. Sensing two Sith directly behind it, Revan collected himself and checked that the blaster was set to maximum power. Focusing through the Force on the Sith's positions, Revan palmed the door's lock, immediately spraying the room with blaster bolts and killing both Sith instantly in the hail of blasterfire.

"Before you move through the next section there's a full squad of Sith in there. You might want to try finding another way around."

Revan acknowledged Carth as he set the blaster rifle down and moved swiftly back to where he had set the wounded Jedi down. Doing a quick check of the woman's wounds, Revan carried the woman to the room he had just cleared and set her down gently, again adjusting her position so she could breath freely. Moving back to the hallway Revan collected the fallen Dark Jedi's lightsaber as it was steadily moving towards the deck, leaving a glowing orange trail of molten durasteel where it had struck. Deactivating the saber, Revan clipped it carefully to a harness on his belt and moved into the cleared room, glancing at the Jedi before he checked a nearby security console.

"You can try overloading the power conduit in the next room or there's a security droid you might be able to repair."

Carth's voice had called over Revan's comm and he again acknowledged, unnerved slightly that the man had been watching him specifically. Glad he was saving the Jedi and had not killed Trask on sight, Revan hacked into the console, sending an energy feedback over the power coupling in the next room and overloading the power conduit. The Sith were all killed in the resulting explosion and Revan moved quickly, gently lifting the wounded Jedi into his arms and moving into the next room where Carth had already opened the door and was urging him on.

"Come on we gotta get out of here. Now that Bastila's gone there's nothing stopping the Sith from turning us to space dust!"  
Revan couldn't help but agree and nodded, moving into the escape pod as quickly as he could with his burden and strapping the young woman into a harness before he sat himself down beside her and did the same. Carth copied Revan's movements, sealing and launching the pod and moments later the _Endar Spire_ was engulfed in fire as it's reactor was struck and overloaded. Debris shot towards their pod and Revan watched with morbid fascination as through the orange flame blocking the pod's rear viewport the debris turned to ash in Taris' atmosphere.

"We're coming in too fast."

Revan stated, glancing at the Jedi. Spotting the metal tube in the Jedi's chest that allowed her to breath, Revan cursed, pulling the tube from her chest and using the Force to stabilize the pod as best he could without alerting Malak to his presence. Pocketing the tube, Revan caught Carth's frown and nodded towards the forward viewport where Taris' surface was rapidly approaching. Nodding in understanding, Carth activated the descent thrusters, barely avoiding a head-on collision with a Tarisian skyscraper and merely clipping the building before they struck a walkway and came to a jarring halt. Revan felt himself falling forward and then snapping back in his seat and felt the back of his head strike the pod's hull. Tasting blood as his mouth automatically closed and he ended up biting his tongue, Revan shook his head to clear the concussion. Focusing the Force to keep his body moving, Revan removed the harness on the Jedi, pulling the tube from his pocket and replacing it and glancing at Carth.

"Can you carry her?"

Carth asked, rubbing his elbow from where it had struck the side of the pod on the impact. Revan nodded wearily, his eyes losing their focus and nausea hitting him. Shaking his head once more, Revan moved to the doorway as Carth pulled an emergency field pack from the pod's side and then opened the hatch. The pressure lock disengaged and the door flew off, missing the walkway and falling deep into the bowels of Taris' undercity as a single Jedi, a former Dark Lord of the Sith and a Republic Commander moved silently in the Tarisian night. Revan and Carth ran swiftly, Revan lagging behind from his extra burden and his throbbing skull. Revan paused, catching his breath before he moved again, getting inside of an apartment complex just as a Sith transport came into view and shined a bright spotlight on the pod. The light waved from side to side, searching for the pod's occupants and Revan turned away, moving quickly into the lift of the apartment complex and leaning heavily against the wall of the lift.

"She's got a punctured lung and is unconscious from the trauma of the injury. She's going to need a surgeon."

Revan managed to choke out the statement as he felt himself losing consciousness.

"I've got a concussion... take her first and come back for me if you find shelter here..."

Carth gave the Republic soldier before him a respectful look before he collected Revan's burden and moved out of the lift to the first floor of the apartment complex. Seeing empty halls and several abandoned apartments, Carth sighed in relief and moved quickly into one that had a fairly simple lock. Setting the Jedi on a bed, Carth moved back quickly for his fellow soldier, spotting the man trying to stand. Moving quickly, Carth pulled one of Revan's arms over his shoulder and lifted the man, half supporting, half dragging the former Sith Lord to the apartment. Once inside, Carth sat Revan in a chair and turned to the door, locking it and then opening the emergency field pack. Revan swayed slightly, his blurry vision seeing the Republic Commander pull a syringe from an emergency medkit before he saw the room shift to its side and felt his head connect against the floor of the Tarisian apartment. Darkness clouded Revan's vision and he tasted blood in his mouth before he knew nothing more of his surroundings and fell into unconsciousness.


	5. Chapter 4: A Bad Situation

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 4: A Bad Situation

Revan groaned wearily as his eyes opened and the pounding in his head increased ten-fold. Swallowing the bile rising in his throat the former Dark Lord of the Sith rolled to his side, blinking against the harsh lighting of Taris' early morning sun that shone brightly through the window of the apartment he occupied. Lying still for a moment, Revan collected himself and sat up, gingerly rubbing the side and back of his head and feeling a tender bruise that had yet to heal. Swallowing again as nausea threatened to expel what little food remained in his stomach, Revan turned to his side, bent forward at the waist and he breathed in and out slowly. A dream had been flickering in the back of his mind only moments before but he could not quite recall what it was about and with a sigh, the former Dark Lord of the Sith pushed himself off of his bed and to his feet.

"Its good to see you up, instead of thrashing around in your sleep..."

The voice was quiet, as if its owner knew he had suffered a concussion and Revan glanced at the only other standing occupant of the room. Memories worked their way to the forefront of his mind and he came up with a name.

"Carth Onasi..."

Carth nodded, glad the man wasn't suffering from any apparent neural damage from his bump to the head and the Republic Commander glanced down nervously at the still unconscious Jedi that lay on the apartment's other bed.

"How long have I been out and what's happened since we crashed?"

Revan asked, all business. Carth appreciated the fact and decided to get their situation in the open to the younger man.  
"You've been unconscious for about six hours. Its morning on this side of Taris now and I was hoping you could give me a hand with the Jedi."

Revan knew what a concussion felt like and looking down at the pulled up sleeve of his uniform he knew Carth had given him an injection to help with the pain and stabilize his condition. In all seriousness it felt more like a bad hangover than a painful concussion and Revan silently thanked the Force for small favors, though it was still too bright in the room for his tastes.

"Sure just give me a minute to get my bearings."

Carth nodded, nervously running a hand through his hair. He'd examined the Jedi's wounds and saw that they were beyond his skill to heal and that they should have been beyond his companion's skill to heal if what was in the man's service records was accurate.

"How did you know she had a punctured lung?"

Carth asked calmly, trying to hide his suspicion. Revan grunted as he walked towards the fresher, turning on the faucet and splashing cold water on his face before taking a few drinks and turning it off. Reentering the apartment's common room, Revan sat himself at the table near the small workbench and rubbed his eyes.

"Saw a few things like that in the war. Picked up a talent or two since then."

Revan's tone was flat and he had no expression. Seeing this, Carth relaxed slightly and nodded. A lot of skills were picked up during the war that people didn't write down.

"I saw in your service record that before you joined you understood a large number of alien languages and you already had a fairly vast array of skills... That's pretty rare in a raw recruit."

Revan noticed the skeptical tone in Carth's voice and decided to humor the man. If what he suspected of their situation was true, he'd need the man's help.

"I didn't have a pretty childhood. Had to learn a lot and travel a lot before I got to the Republic. Some nice people took me in and then the wars broke out and I found out my talents were better suited for helping rather than nothing."

Carth's brow furrowed slightly as he mulled over the new information and Revan took the time to study the man. The man had brown eyes and hair similar to his though his own eyes were darker and the older man's skin was slightly paler than Revan's. Carth's hair was also short where-as Revan's reached to his shoulders and the Dark Lord scowled slightly at the well-trimmed goatee on Carth's face that nearly matched his own though his was a little lighter in shade. People might have started mistaking them for brothers, something he'd had enough of while around Malak. Standing slowly from his seat, Revan smirked mentally when he noticed he was a few inches taller than Carth and he turned to examine the Jedi he'd taken the trouble of saving.

"Well the good news is she hasn't gotten any worse..."

Revan muttered to Carth as the Republic soldier came to his side. Both men frowned at the injured Jedi before Revan stretched slightly, moving back to the table and setting out his weapons on the workbench, along with the looted Sith lightsaber.

"She's gonna need some medical attention and you and I are going to have to go incognito. Republic red and orange isn't going to fly for very long here on Taris."

Carth nodded at Revan's statement before he started updating Revan's knowledge of the system. He'd kept up with the state of the galaxy but nothing too specific and it seemed like Carth had done a little scouting while he was unconscious.

"Taris is under Sith control. Their fleet is orbiting the planet, they've declared martial law and they've imposed a planet-wide quarantine. I've been in worse spots though and if your service record is accurate your skills would be very useful on a foreign planet. There's no way the Republic can get any ships through the blockade, most of Malak's own fleet is up there and if we're going to find Bastila and get off this planet we can't rely on anyone but ourselves."

Revan thought over Carth's statement and nodded his agreement. Maybe if he saved Bastila he wouldn't have to deal with the unwelcome guilt her actions on his flagship had caused him. He could leave with a relatively clean conscience and begin working out his own situation free of Sith and Jedi intervention. A small scowl worked its way on Revan's face as he thought of being indebted to Bastila and the concept of a clean conscience. He could care less about a clean conscience but he still had his honor and his honor told him that leaving Bastila to her own fate was unacceptable. It was just plain un-Mandalorian; kill her or help her, nothing much beyond that. Mandalorians liked to keep things simple.

"Yea but that's gonna be a problem..."

Glancing at Carth, Revan noted with pleasure that the older man had stripped any Republic insignia from his jacket. Threads and lighter shades to the man's brown-orange jacket showed the impressions of the old insignia but not enough to identify them as Republic. Pulling off his standard issue Republic infantry armor, Revan studied the design before sighing and shaking his head. Stripping himself of his shirt, Revan tore off the sleeves and tunic, adjusting the neck to make it look more like a spacer's vest than a tan uniformed shirt. Pushing the armor by the workbench, Revan pulled out his vibroblade, inspecting the edge before sheathing the deadly weapon and attaching it to his waist.  
"Looks like you've done this before."

Carth joked. Revan smirked at the older man, nodding to Carth's own jacket and the Republic Commander chuckled lightly.

"If we can get the supplies I might be able to operate on the Jedi. If she wakes up she might be able to heal herself and that would save us a lot of trouble. How many credits do you have on you?"

Carth checked his pockets, producing several different credit chips and placing them on the table while Revan did the same. Both glanced at the Jedi before turning back to their pile of credits and Revan sighed, picking them up and handing them to Carth.

"Three hundred credits isn't going to be enough to get medical supplies but you can get us some new clothes. I'll keep an eye on her while you find me something a little less conspicuous to wear... something in black would be nice. Once you're back I'll change and hit the local cantina. They usually have pretty good opportunities to make credits fast."

Revan did not add that it would likely be highly illegal or dangerous but Carth nodded and moved to the door, pausing as he glanced back. That man was still wearing a white undershirt but the blood staining his arm from a grazed blasterbolt required attention. Seeing that his companion was already tearing off his sleeve to check the injury, Carth noticed a pile of weapons looted from the Sith on the _Endar_ _Spire._

"Actually... Is there anything we can sell in all this junk?"

Revan glanced at his vibroblade and a few ransacked Sith blasters. Seeing the Sith and Jedi's lightsabers; Revan pondered selling one before shaking his head.

"Take the blasters and any ordinance we have. We probably won't get too far on this world if we're too heavily armed and the lightsabers and Republic armor would raise a red flag."

Carth silently agreed, surprised at how much his fellow soldier knew but also knowing the man's service record and knowing his companion was likely used to this type of situation. Collecting what could be scavenged, Carth threw the junk in a field pack and exited the room while Revan looked through the contents of the emergency medpack and checked the Jedi's pulse. Withdrawing the tube from the Jedi's chest, Revan focused a small amount of healing energy into his hand and channeled it into the woman's aura. The Jedi's consciousness shifted slightly but she remained oblivious and Revan slowly induced a relatively weak healing trance on the Jedi, backing away and waiting. The Jedi's body began to mend, slowly by Jedi and Sith standards but still very fast when compared to most normal sentients and Revan relaxed slightly when he felt the damage to the woman's lung tissue repairing itself. Using the tube once more to relieve the pressure against the lung, Revan removed it once the excess air was expelled from her chest cavity and set the tube down on the workbench before he examined the Jedi's injuries through the Force.

"You'd better not know who I bloody am or you're going to have a tragic turn in your recovery..."

Smirking slightly at the unlikely event of the Jedi exposing his true identity to his supposed reformed persona, Revan checked his own injures, seeing that they were fairly shallow. Binding a bandage around his arm, Revan frowned at the Mythosaur skull tattoo that identified him as a Mandalorian. Readjusting the bandages so they covered the symbol as well as his wound, Revan searched his false memories for the explanation the Jedi had made on that one. A disgusted snort of suppressed laughter followed as Revan rolled his eyes. The Jedi's inconsistencies in his programmed persona were severely lacking and all his mind would tell him of that trail of thought was that he had simply _had_ the tattoo. Moving to the small workbench, Revan pulled over the chair from the table, seated himself and rubbed his eyes to ward off the still present nausea. Shaking his head slowly to clear it once more, the former Dark Lord of the Sith picked up the looted Sith lightsaber, testing the weapon's balance and uniqueness before setting it on the workbench and taking apart the casing. A lightsaber was an extension of its owner and if he were to start using one, especially one he hadn't made himself it would have to be modified. Heavily.

Bastila Shan was having about as much luck as Revan in the concussion department. The Padawan had been using her Battle Meditation to ensure the safety of the _Endar Spire's_ defenders and hadn't really been able to hit the descent thrusters on her escape pod. The end result was the pod violently crashing deep into Taris' undercity, her losing consciousness from her head striking a very hard metal hull and her subsequent capture by a group of street thugs who fancied themselves as the leaders of Taris' underworld. The Padawan could scarcely bring her head up let alone fight and she had been quickly restrained, her wounds poorly treated and then fitted with a neural disruptor and thrown into a cell. At some point in her unconsciousness, the Padawan found herself being redressed and she shuddered slightly at the thought. Trying to focus her mind against the effects of the neural disruptor, the Padawan found only one thing that would respond. The bond she had created to save Darth Revan's life.

Tracing along the bond weakly, Bastila could feel Revan was far from her and her focus was lost once more to confusing and terrifying thoughts that would never rest on a single subject for more than a brief moment. It was as if all the events of her life were being presented before her senses within a few seconds and the experience was far from pleasant. Feeling her throat tighten, Bastila tried to focus, her head rolling as she tried to move, tried to think. Sounds were fairly clear as was a rather unpleasant odor she would later attribute to Taris' undercity but the Padawan found that nothing could hold her attention for more than a few seconds and that was not enough time to manipulate the small lock on her collar, nor was it enough time to even think about escaping. She was at the mercy of the Black Vulkars, a violent and territorial swoop bike gang of Taris' undercity and, if what she had heard would have gotten through the clutter of her mind, she would have been quite offended. They intended to sell her off as a slave, an unspoiled Republic officer to be won in Taris' swoop bike championship race. A pawn in the Vulkar's power play with the Undercity.

A good three hour had passed before Revan sensed Carth Onasi's presence in the Force approaching their hiding place. Spinning the completed Sith lightsaber in his hand experimentally, the former Dark Lord nodded approvingly at his work. The last user of the lightsaber had been a practitioner of either Shien or Djem So and the saber's handle had been rather encumbered and difficult to grip with the Juyo style Revan had perfected early in the Mandalorian. A simple redesign of the switch mechanism had given the saber a cleaner hold and some extra leather from his scrapped armor had given the saber an excellent grip. Cutting down on the unnecessary components, the saber's counterweight was cut down significantly from its previous design and given a smoother, sleeker feel. Feeling the light weight of the hilt and the near-perfect balance, Revan smirked.

_"Now the only problem is making it bloody work."_

Consequently to his modifications, the focusing emitter and crystal casing of the saber had to be completely redesigned and that simply could not be done in three hours. Placing the incomplete saber as well as the extra parts on a piece of cloth, Revan folded the cloth to keep the parts from rolling away and set it behind where his armor lay on the floor. Lifting his vibroblade, Revan calmly sharpened its edge, lifting the blade to inspect its edge as Carth Onasi entered the room. Spinning quickly, Revan raised the blade in a defensive stance, staring warily at the opened doorway while Carth nodded to the former Dark Lord. Lowering the blade, Revan played his part well and pretended to come down from an adrenaline rush at an unexpected intrusion.

"We should lock that."

Revan muttered. Carth smirked slightly but shook his head as he shifted the weight of his burden slightly to present it to Revan.

"A locked door raises too many questions."

Revan sheathed his vibroblade, crossing the room and taking the package from Carth while he glanced at the Jedi with an uneasy expression. Carth followed Revan's gaze and frowned at the Jedi before looking back to his fellow soldier. The tube was gone and the Jedi, while pale and sickly looked a lot better than she had.

"I don't know how Jedi work but somewhere along the line her injuries started mending and I had to take the tube out."

Revan played his part well and Carth nodded, uncertain as to the extend of a Jedi's power.

"That's good news."

Revan nodded absently, turning from Carth and setting down the package. Inspecting the clothing and testing the material, the former Dark Lord quickly stripped of his Republic uniform, pulling on a set of pain black trousers, a simple black tunic and a black and silver armored chest piece. The result was less than flattering and the clothing was a little loose but Revan decided it would do for a time. Folding his Republic uniform, Revan set it by his discarded armor and further obscured his lightsaber while he sat in the chair and pulled on the black Republic standard issue boots. Tucking his pantlegs into the boots, Revan adjusted the straps accordingly while testing his range of movement in the new clothing and armor.

"This will do."

Revan decided. Carth had taken a seat at the table and was sorting through what looking like sandwiches. Moving to the table, Revan seated himself and waited while Carth stared at the food before them, then glanced at the Jedi and then to Revan. A small grimace appeared on Carth's face and Revan chuckled lightly.

"Its better I don't know what this is, then."

Carth nodded to that, taking half of the sandwich and biting into it. Chewing with a thoughtful expression, the Republic Commander shrugged at Revan's raised brow and swallowed before he voiced his thoughts. With the Jedi recovering their odds were improving significantly and they only had to wait for the young woman to heal and regain consciousness.

"I got stopped about four times by the Sith on the streets. Thankfully they took me for a merchant and didn't look too closely at the weapons. I got a good two hundred credits from the weapons and we've got about three hundred and forty left after the food and the clothing. I also took the liberty of talking with a doctor and he said he could stop by later to have a look at the Jedi."

Revan frowned at that and Carth explained after taking another bite of his sandwich.

"I don't normally trust people but from what I saw of the man he was a doctor before anything else. Talking to him I got the impression he didn't like the Sith occupation and he seemed strained on medicines because of the blockade."  
Revan's frown eased slightly and he calmly took a bite of the food Carth had found. It wasn't bad but it wasn't good either and Revan shrugged mentally, chewing thoughtfully as he decided to put his own thoughts into the discussion.

"A second... well a professional opinion would be nice. The Jedi looks like she's healing but I'm sure you've heard the expression; _looks can be deceiving_. We'll split the credits we have left. I'll head to the Cantina now that I'm in some acceptable clothing and I'll try to dig up some more credits..."

Glancing out the window of the Tarisian apartment, Revan nodded to himself. It was late afternoon on Taris and soon the Cantinas would be filled with gamblers... the perfect source of funds for someone who could read other's minds. Carth glanced at the Jedi, a frown of concern replacing his earlier frown and the soldier took on a tired look. Revan stood, placing his hand on the older man's shoulder and staring down at the man as he stood, locking eyes.

"You did good today, Carth. You saved not only my life, but the Jedi's too. Before I joined the Republic I had a lot of experience in scrounging up credits, so don't worry about it. We'd both be dead now if it wasn't for you."

Carth's frown eased slightly to a blank look and the soldier nodded.

"Get some sleep, I'll keep watch for the time being. I'm sure its still a bit early for the Cantina to be... shall we say, lively."

Carth huffed slightly on a laugh, the corner of his mouth rising in a smirk as he nodded his thanks to the other man. Something about the younger man simply made him feel like he was the Ensign, not the Commander and the Telosian moved to the unoccupied cot and stripped off his heavy jacket, laying it across the head of the cot as a makeshift pillow before laying down and closing his eyes. Hearing the younger Republic soldier moving around the room, Carth cracked open an eye, watching as the younger man checked the Jedi's breathing before he began adjusting his armor and moving in a simple martial arts kata, working out the range of movements available to him. Furrowing his brow slightly at the strange martial arts form, Carth shrugged mentally and closed his eyes, slowly falling into a light sleep.

Revan waited until he sensed Carth had fallen completely asleep before he reached under his discarded Republic armor and pulled out the cylindrical casing of the lightsaber he had taken on the _Endar Spire_. Using a metal file, Revan reshaped the weapon further, testing the feel of the casing with a nod before he pulled out the remnants of the crystal housing and the focusing emitter. If we worked quickly, he might be able to get it done before night fell.

Taris' sun was buried beneath the distant towers of the cityscape by the time Carth Onasi awoke. With a groan, the Republic Commander stretched, yawning wearily before he rubbed a hand over his face to clear away some of the lingering sleep. Focusing on his surroundings, Carth pulled a pistol free from his holster, standing and doing a wary check of the room. The Jedi was still lying on the cot, breathing but not responsive and from the sound of things, Tauryn Katarn was in the fresher, cleaning up. Stretching again, Carth moved over to the workbench Revan had been using, frowning at how impeccably clean the surface was and the lack of anything beyond tools. He had no idea what the younger human was working on and decided to clean his pistols before he'd be forced to use them again. A frown worked its way on Carth's features as he thought of how frequently that was likely to become and he quietly pulled the power pack from his blaster, using a slightly stained rag to wipe grease that had collected on the power cell housing before he worked his way into the blaster's barrel and blaster bolt chambering mechanism.

Revan stood calmly in the fresher, the water running in the background and filling the room with steam. Staring at his reflection in the mirror, Revan lifted a vibroblade to his face, trimming stubble that had formed since his last shave and frowned at the cylindrical lightsaber hilt that sat on the sink. The blasted thing had taken a lot longer to configure than he had hoped but he had a fairly effective weapon that suited his old style. He'd even taken measures to make it look like part of his armor and he knew he's likely not even use it while on Taris. Unless of course, things got extremely unpredictable. Sensing Malak's attention was focused on finding Bastila, Revan was slowly reestablishing his slightly weakened connection to the Force and had been watching the activity of the apartment complex carefully. He, Carth and the Jedi were the only humans in the entire building and it was sure to arouse suspicion if they were spotted by Sith. Rinsing off the vibroblade and wiping the blade clean, Revan sheathed the dagger-like weapon in his boot, splashing some water on his face before using a towel to dry himself. The Dark Lord stared at his reflection a moment before he brushed a hand through his shoulder-length hair to straighten it.

"Not so bad..."

Revan muttered to himself, his appearance nothing fancy but acceptable. Adjusting the lightsaber into a small compartment along the small of his back of his dull silver-armored chest piece, Revan made certain it was secure and no danger to him before he pulled on his belt, settling the scabbard of his vibrosword comfortably and moved to adjusting his armor's straps. With all of his equipment secure, Revan moved to the doorway, stepping into the apartment as he adjusted his sleeves, making a mental note to pick up some vambrances and some comfortable black leather gloves before he spotted Carth at the workbench.

"You going to be okay here?"

Revan asked, drawing Carth's attention. Carth rose a brow at how Revan looked, the armored chest piece similar to a Mandalorian's but lacking the vital element of Mandalorian metal to make it strong. Durasteel would have to do with how short their funds were.

"We should be fine."  
Carth answered, nodding to the Jedi.

"See if you can get that Doctor of yours to look at her while I'm gone. I'll see what I can do with these in the meantime..."

Revan pulled several credit chips from the table, smirking and turned to leave. Carth followed the man with narrowed eyes until he was gone and turned back to his blaster, cautiously glancing back over his shoulder before fully pulling his free hand away from his second pistol, still holstered at his side facing away from the doorway. He didn't trust easily and the fact that the man had been lax in his guard duty was troubling. Carth didn't know Revan's ability to see through the Force and that would not have likely helped the Telosian's opinion of the deposed Dark Lord.

Revan moved cautiously through the halls of the apartment complex, carefully avoiding Sith patrols that moved through the area. Reaching the lift, the former Sith Lord entered cautiously, finding his way to Taris' upper skywalk within a matter of moments. Sith troopers patrolled the area heavily and Revan calmly walked around them, subtly using the Force to shield his fairly conspicuous form, though not entirely. Several times the Sith stopped him and questioned him and Revan calmly explained that he was a mercenary, stuck on world by the blockade and looking for work. The Sith were suspicious but let him go about his business and Revan sighed to himself, wondering how Carth had managed to talk his way past the Sith without using a Force-suggestion. In the distance at the end of the walkway, a Cantina's flashing lights were visible in the early night of Taris and Revan smirked to himself, absently toying with a credit chip in his right hand. It would be almost too easy to con some gamblers out of their credits.


	6. Chapter 5: For a Few Credits More

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 5: For a Few Credits More

Pazaak was not exactly Revan's first choice as a moneymaking game but then, it was much easier than the alternatives. Purchasing a simple starter deck, Revan was able to, through hours of careful playing; acquire a fairly decent amount of credits. Moving from table to table and Cantina to Cantina, the former Dark Lord of the Sith evaded suspicion by subtly winning some hands and losing others. It took much longer than would have been needed but Revan wanted, above all things; to avoid suspicion. None of the opponents he faced lost too much to him and none regarded him with hostility at the close of the games. Some, Revan even purposely lost to, throwing off suspicion with feigned looks of frustration and surprise. By the time Taris' sun began to rise on the second day following the _Endar Spire's_ destruction, Revan had several thousand credits in his possession as well as some rough intelligence on the Sith's interaction with Taris' natives.

Shortly after dawn, Revan's black and silver-clad form could be seen searching local shops for several hours as he searched for a pair of comfortable gloves, reliable armored vambrances and a suitable disguise for Carth and the Jedi, should she recover and serve a purpose. The former Dark Lord spent close to two thousand credits of his winnings and worked a relatively decent cover-story up for himself, Carth Onasi and the wounded Jedi. Mercenaries would be the best cover, Revan decided as he thought ahead on how to gain entrance unto Taris' undercity. Answers would be few and far between in the Sith-controlled upper levels of the world and the former Sith had the foresight to know the Sith would be stretched thin below, likely thin enough to allow paid mercenaries working for them through. The only problem would be finding a legitimate set of orders and papers that would get them past the Sith guards without raising suspicion.

_"Getting ahead of yourself."_

Revan cautioned himself, recalling that one of his party was still comatose. Moving silently through Taris' early morning activity, the former Dark Lord kept his presence well hidden from prying eyes as he made his way into the apartment complex he, Carth and the Jedi were using as their base of operations. Stepping through the doorway, Revan raised a brow at Carth's raised blaster, eyeing the soldier's readiness approvingly. If the Republic had many more like him, Malak's Sith would have been hard-pressed to smash the remains of the Republic. Carth eyed his fellow soldier's appearance critically, raising a brow at the package the younger man was carrying.

"I see you've been busy."

Carth stated, slowly holstering his pistol and approaching Revan. Revan nodded, setting his burden on the table and pulling out a large black leather cloak.  
"I figured we'd need a good cover. Mercenaries sounded good to me."

Eyeing the coat with a raised brow, Carth shook his head in disgust.

"I thought we were going low profile."

The Republic Commander muttered as the younger man pulled the black leather and cloth cloak over his shoulders, testing his range of movements. Revan nodded to the bag and Carth stared at the weapons and armor with a blank look.

"I suggest keeping the stubble."

Revan smoothed back his hair, well over the length of a standard Republic soldier's regulation cut while Carth absently brushed the two days worth of stubble forming on his chin. Revan pulled a black leather holster from the pile of goods, complete with a blaster pistol and strapped it to his waist, opposite his sword. Making sure the outfit did not encumber his movements too greatly, Revan added his final touch to the mercenary gear, a simple red-tinted visor that covered only his left eye and hung from his ear with a microphone running down to his beard.

"How do I look?"

Revan asked with a smirk. Carth moved his attention from a lethal-looking blaster rifle and turned his eyes back to his companion, smirking.

"Like someone who's watched too many holo dramas."

Revan rolled his eyes, tapping into the supposedly secured communications frequency he and Carth had been using before removing the headset and placing it into a pocket of his cloak. Carth found a set of armor and clothing much too small for himself and glanced at his companion, chuckling,

"I think you misjudged my size."

Revan, having taken a seat on the cot the two soldiers were rotating turned and stared at Carth blankly before he spotted the clothing. Laughing genuinely for the first time in what felt like years, Revan shook his head.

"I figured you'd want some incentive to keeping your girlish figure. Come on a few extra push-ups a night, maybe an extra click or two to your workouts and you'll just slide right in that."

Carth cackled at that, letting out a good, hard laugh. It'd been literally years since he'd laughed so hard but his mind needed it to ease the stress of his situation. It took several minutes for both humans to calm enough to attempt talking and even then they chuckled as they attempted to speak to one another.

"Di- did your doctor friend have time to stop by?"

Carth nodded, wiping his eyes as he smiled slightly at the ease in pressure on his mind.

"Yea... Yea, he said she'd be fine if she ever wakes up. He was worried about brain damage from lack of oxygen getting to her brain but his scans showed no damage. Her wounds should be fully healed in a day or two and I assume she'll come out of her coma then... I don't know much about Jedi or the Force but If she's healing herself... well, we might have an invaluable set of hands come tomorrow helping us out."

Revan nodded absently, keeping his opinions to himself. If the Jedi recognized him he'd have to kill her and likely Onasi. While it didn't particularly weight on his conscience, a long-dead part of Revan's heart rebelled against the idea. Still, he could go to ground fairly quickly, ignore Bastila completely and likely disappear from prying eyes by himself.

_"But Malak is not a patient man."_

Malak would likely destroy the planet if initial search attempts would not yield fast results. Glancing at the Jedi, Revan frowned as he let out a slow breath. Malak's impatience would compound things and if he were alone he'd needed to be able to move quickly and unnoticed through Taris' various districts if he was to find a way off-world. Malak wouldn't outright destroy a planet before at least making an attempt but Revan knew Malak was a competent military commander and the risk of Bastila escaping Taris would be too great. If a ship should slip past the blockade, Revan was certain Malak would obliterate the world, atomizing its inhabitants and turning the towering spires to smoldering rubble. No, he would need the Jedi and Carth's help.

Shrugging of his dark and foreboding thoughts, Revan groaned as he picked himself up from the cot, moving to the table and pulling out Carth's supplies. Sifting through the clothing and armor he knew would fit the Jedi perfectly, at least if his estimate was right, Revan pulled out a blaster kit to modify the soldier's twin standard issued blasters.

"Holy- How did you get that?"

Carth asked, seeing a disruptor modification and an ion power cell for his blasters. Disruptors were highly illegal in the Republic and pretty much made the personal shields of opponents pointless as they were designed to rip right through them. Armor didn't hold up too well against the powerful disruptors either but with a high end shield or the proper armor Disruptors could be pretty much worthless. Mandalorian metal seemed to absorb the powerful energy blasts and a pistol would have to be heavily modified to even accommodate the drastic increase in power output. Ion power cells let off an ion discharge that shorted out mechanical and electrical power sources, perfect for killing droids or disabling locks.

"Selector switch and all."

Revan muttered, showing the kit to Carth. Carth's brow rose slightly and a suspicious look crossed his face.

"You were out one night and manage to dig up enough illegal weapons modifications to get someone banned from the Inner Core for life... What the Hell?"

Revan smirked slightly, his good humor from the joking still present though Carth seemed to be growing serious. Drawing in a calming breath, Revan motioned to Carth's pistols.

"If we're going as mercenaries we better not look like we just raided a Republic armory. I got this little box from a local arms dealer who was a little upset at the Sith raiding her heavy weaponry and not compensating her losses."

Carth spotted a powerful permacrete detonator trigger and stared at his fellow soldier like he'd grown another head. Revan tossed the kit to Carth, watching the soldier's face closely as he took on a serious expression himself.

"If this is going to work we have to look and act the part. I'm sure acting like a soldier isn't that hard for you and I'm certain the Jedi won't have trouble falling in but if we don't look like mercs we'll stick out like a bloody pink Bantha..."

Revan trailed off, frowning at the mental image of a blood-stained pink Bantha trudging through the Dune Sea. Carth noticed the look of disgust on the younger man's face and chuckled, letting his suspicion go for the time being. However the other man had gotten his hands on dangerous and illegal modifications could wait. At least until he had the modifications in his weapons and found himself in a better position to negotiate the information out of him. Setting one of his pistols on the workbench with the kit, Carth moved to inspect the armor Revan had purchased for him, eyeing its design critically as he kept his good hand resting on the handle of his pistol. Revan seemed to notice this and frowned to himself, shaking away the disturbing mental image his mind had concocted before he moved to the Jedi's side, checking her vitals carefully and staring down at the young woman's features with a frown. The Jedi Revan had been didn't know the girl, at least not by sight alone and that thought comforted the deposed Dark Lord slightly. So long as the Jedi didn't recognize him before finding Bastila he could allow her to live. No doubt Bastila would fill her fellow Jedi in on her charge when- if she joined them.

_"Her bloody charge! What have I been reduced to?"_

Sneering slightly in disgust with himself and his situation, Revan shook off Carth's suspicious look with a yawn, balling his right fist and patting his chest with a half-burp.

"I think I may have overdone it on the Tarisian Ale last night."

Carth huffed on a half-laugh, motioning to the unoccupied cot. Revan nodded with a look of gratitude on his face as he shed his black leather hooded cloak, his gloves and vambrances and his weapons before removing his armor and boots and sitting on the bed, rubbing his face and groaning to help the image of exhaustion along. In truth he could stay awake for days without feeling the effect. Of course that was if he wanted to channel the Force for strength or meditate and that would raise suspicions and subtly was something Revan understood well enough to exercise its use at times. The numerous lucky breaks he was coming along would have to be followed soon by something drastically unlucky or Revan knew he'd be constantly under the suspicious gaze of the Telosian Republic Commander he knew was watching him closely as he laid down and closed his eyes. Confident Carth wouldn't shoot him in his sleep, Revan allowed his mind to wander into the realm of unconsciousness while keeping his body alert and ready to act at a moment's notice.

By noon Revan was feeling refreshed and opened his eyes slowly, glancing about the room and seeing that Carth was still toying with his blasters at the workbench. Stretching slightly, the former Dark Lord of the Sith felt several bones in his spine pop and he sighed in contentment. That had felt good. Rubbing his eyes and wiping his nose as he blinked against the change in light, Revan nodded to Carth when the Commander turned and gave him an inquisitive look.

"Anything interesting happen, Carth?"

Revan asked, yawning and shaking his head to clear the sleep from his mind. Carth shrugged, holding up one of his blaster pistols and Revan smirked tiredly as he stood, stretching again and moved to Carth's side.

"Looks more like a Mandalorian heavy blaster than a standard issued Republic blaster."

Carth nodded his agreement, putting the finishing touches on his second blaster pistol before he handed it to Revan.

"Yea Tauryn. The armor fits pretty well... can't complain too much about it. You couldn't find any shields?"

Revan shook his head, glancing at the ion-modified pistol.

"I bought a sonic pistol myself. No time to modify it but it should still get the job done."

Carth rose a brow at that. There was no reason the other man would go out of his way to modify his companion's weapons and not his own and Carth was, naturally suspicious. Sensing Carth's train of thought, Revan rolled his eyes, handing the ion-modified pistol back to Carth as he motioned to his sword resting against his cot.

"I prefer blades to blasters. No nasty surprises with them..."

Carth's eyes flickered with a memory of a single Mandalorian ripping through his fellow soldiers because of armor and shielding and nodded absently. A vibroblade would have taken the Mandalorian down much faster and may have saved lives. Hell a sonic blaster would have stunned the Mandalorian long enough for someone to get close enough to use the blade and Carth suddenly appreciated his companion's choice of weapons. Obviously the man was used to fighting close-quarters and he'd seen first-hand on the _Spire_ just how deadly the younger human was with a blade. Revan moved to the fresher, cleaning up while Carth put the finishing touches on his pistols and holstered the much deadlier weapons. Shifting slightly in his armor. The design was simple, only covering the chest for protection but Carth was more concerned with how much the armor slowed down his draw. A split-second could mean life or death and Carth was half a mind to discard the armor before he noticed a switch on the front in an obscure compartment. Tapping the panel open, Carth stared down at the interface, frowning.

_"How the Hell did he find a powered battlesuit here?"_

Shaking his head, Carth decided it was best not to know some things. Likely his fellow soldier had been up all night getting money and asking the right people the right questions to be so fortunate and the dark brown and green of the armor seemed to fit well enough with his black pants and his brown coat. Carth suddenly had an epiphany when he looked over at Revan's long cloak. They were wearing powerful weapons and heavy armor while also having clothing designed to obscure that fact. It didn't exactly scream mercenary to Carth, more like bounty hunter or assassin but then, Carth knew few people made the distinction between the two and he hoped the Sith weren't too competent about it either.

Revan exited the fresher clad in a simple black tunic and trousers. Strapping on his knee high boots, the former Sith Lord laced armored leg guards and knee guards over his trousers before he pulled on his silver armored breastplate. Pulling a dark red leather vest over the armor, Revan then pulled on his comfortable black leather gloves and his vambrances, the color matching his vest. Carth stared at the younger man blankly a moment, his mind playing an image of a fallen Sith Lord briefly in his head as Revan pulled the hood over his shoulder-length hair and tested his armor and outfit's range of movements with an imaginary sword in his hand.  
"That- I don't think people are going to be asking us too many questions if you look like that..."

Carth muttered. The black cloak his companion wore hung down to his ankles and was a mixture of patches of cloth and leather spaced evenly to likely allow a better range of movements than a heavy leather cloak would. The dark red leather vest covered Revan's rather dull silver breastplate and only added to the sinister look of the clothing. Black leather gloves, smooth and made from a fine imported leather were visible at the sleeves of the cloak along with the ends of two dark, almost blood red vambrances that Carth knew by looking were some relic of the Mandalorian's fallen Clans. The boots were still the standard Republic issue though black armored plates were added to give the impression of a heavily armored, though fast and agile fighter. Having seen his comrade fight, Carth knew the design was sound though he had doubts as to the overall appearance. The outfit did not look low profile at all.

"You're going to stick out like your _bloody pink Bantha _in that."

Carth muttered, troubled by the way the colors of the Sith seemed to bleed in perfectly with his companion. Revan did a quick mental check of his programmed identity and the records he had read of himself that he just knew Carth had seen before he responded, adjusting his sword and pistol on his waist comfortably as he again grimaced at the mental image he'd created.  
"As if your jacket doesn't stick out just as much. Look, Carth. Subtle is nice and all but I think we're going to have to get noticed one way or the other and the easiest way to do that is by looking like who we're advertising ourselves to be. Wait till you see the tattoos I picked out for the Jedi's face."

Carth's eyes widened slightly and a look of utter disbelief colored his features before he saw his fellow soldier's smirk and shook his head in mock-disgust.

"That, I would pay a year's commission to see."

Revan chuckled darkly at the joke, schooling his features into a blank, hostile look.

"What I look like now. Practice it. It may come in handy when the Sith stop us. I have no doubt they will stop us too."

Carth was slightly taken aback by the look on Revan's face and nodded, pushing aside his concerns though he fidgeted slightly over worries to their situation. Tauryn Katarn was a valuable ally and he knew from the man's record and own statement that he'd grown up outside of the Republic and had seen the seedier sides of the galaxy. That was something Carth too was familiar with though he chose not to dwell on it often. Working on a look of extreme boredom, Carth looked over to Revan, motioning to his face. Revan gave an enthusiastic nod, dropping his hostile facade as he smiled at his companion.

"I'll trade you! That was good!"

Carth shook his head, smirking slightly.

"No thanks, I think I have a patent on that one."

Revan sighed dramatically, looking crestfallen as he moved to the workbench, picking up the Jedi's lightsaber.

"Fine, fine. I'll be the angry go to guy and you can be the one who doesn't have anything better to do. Wonder what she'll be?"

Carth glanced at the almost peaceful expression on the young woman's face, his mind coming up with what he thought was a good cover story.  
"Hey! We can get her some fake headtails and she can be a Twi'lek assassin that tried and failed to kill one of us and has to work with us to regain her honor!"

Revan chuckled, shaking his head as he looked at the lightsaber. Moving his thumb slightly, Revan lined the inactive hilt up with his left leg, absently toying with the weapon. He knew Carth had seen him use one in a crude fashion to distract a Sith and luckily no questions had come up about the missing saber just yet. Still, he needed to ease the other soldier's suspicion, especially with the ridiculous but very stylish outfit he chose.  
"I was trying to take apart that other one, see if I could salvage anything useful. Just ended up turning it to scrap."  
Carth noticed the lightsaber in his comrade's hand and tensed slightly, his right hand absently moving closer to his blaster pistol, just in case. He couldn't afford to let his guard down completely and he knew allies and friends could betray you just as quickly as enemy spies. It wasn't a far jump in his mind to view the talented Republic Ensign in the dark attire as a potential enemy spy. Revan's admission at destroying the other lightsaber stuck in Carth's mind as he glanced at the workbench, seeing unfamiliar scraps he knew were the likely remains of the saber. His internal musings were cut short when he heard his fellow soldier's voice speaking.  
"Still... this one is different, I don- Ack!"

Revan's thumb pressed against a seemingly obscure part of the casing and a bright blue blade shot forth, scorching his thigh. Immediately, the deposed Dark Lord tossed the weapon away, cursing a string of obscene words as he clutched his burnt thigh and glared at the still active blade.  
"What the Hell!"

Carth managed to keep from shouting as he dropped his half-drawn pistol back in its holster. The activating of the blade had kicked in his training and he'd almost given his companion a face full of blaster. Seeing the younger man had injured himself, Carth moved to his side, helping Revan sit down as the younger soldier stared at the lightsaber with an angry and embarrassed look.

"That was unexpected. I always thought all lightsabers were the same."

Carth moved cautiously to the still active weapon, picking it up by its hilt and holding it away from him as he pressed the switch he'd seen his companion press. The blade retracted with a swishing hiss and the Republic Commander carefully laid the weapon down on the workbench, backing away cautiously before he looked back to Revan. Seeing his companion was not injured too greatly, Carth grinned as he picked up the medkit and glanced at the damage critically. A scorch was running right above Revan's left knee, having worked its way between the black knee guard and the leg guard to scorch an angry red line that singed the ends of the metal armor just slightly. The younger soldier was holding the top of his left leg below his hip, keeping pressure on the wound and staring with a look that Carth read as a sort of morbid curiosity at his wound.  
"If I'd known it would hurt that damned much I'd have never stepped in and helped the Jedi with that Sith back on the _Spire._"

Recalling seeing the young man hastily charge a Dark Jedi that had been dueling the unconscious Jedi sitting only yards away, Carth nodded sympathetically. He'd never been cut with a lightsaber but he had heard fist-hand that it was painful. His doubts of the younger man eased slightly at the clumsy spectacle and he let out a chuckle at the dark look his fellow human sent him.

"This isn't funny."

Revan stated in a warning tone. Carth shook his head, injecting a painkiller into his younger companion before spreading a light film of kolto-gel into the wound. A black cloth was tied tightly over the wound as a dressing and Carth offered a hand to Revan. Revan declined, leaning back in his seat with a sour expression on his face as he glowered at the offending lightsaber.

"Remind me never to touch a lightsaber again!"

Revan finally muttered, allowing a small smirk to work its way on his face as he gave a faint laugh. Carth nodded, the humor at the potentially deadly accident still running through him. He'd heard once that a lightsaber in the hands of the inexperienced was more deadly than in the hands of the greatest saber masters and for the first time in his life he actually believed the old Jedi tale. He didn't hear too much about Jedi but he had heard soldiers asking questions about the mysterious and awe-inspiring weapons of the Jedi and Sith and he knew enough to respect their power from afar. Apparently it was a lesson Tauryn Katarn had just learned and would likely take to his grave. Slapping the younger man on the shoulders, Carth closed the medkit, moving to the table and pulling out several hundred credit chips from the bag Revan had set there. The smirk on the soldier's face dropped and he gazed at the younger man with a surprised look.

"What did you do, rob a bank?"

Revan grimaced as a lace of pain shot through his lower body. Maybe he should have found a better way of easing the tension and suspicion between himself and Carth but then, it had worked and he was still functional.  
"Pazaak. Spent most of the time jumping from Cantina to Cantina and knocking off amateurs."

Carth raised a brow, nodding absently as he pocketed the credits, motioning to the remainder.

"We should probably divide this between the three of us equally. Without a reliable bank we wouldn't want to keep it all in one place or on one person."

Revan nodded his agreement, adding his own advice.

"I say split it four ways. Keep most of it here but carry enough between the three of us to get a good start if we should have to drop our things and run... or limp on my part."

Carth chuckled, nodding his agreement as he counted out a total of five hundred credits for himself and handed Revan and equal amount of five hundred. Moving the package containing the credit chips to an obscure location within the room, Carth moved to the young Jedi's side, letting out an annoyed sigh as he glanced at Revan and cocked a brow.

"You hungry? I'm hungry."

Revan watched Carth glance back at the Jedi and smirked as a thought occurred to him. Working on a sly look, Revan waited till Carth looked back at him, with a question on his face at his companion's lack of response. In reply, Revan nodded his head to the unconscious young woman, his sly look turning into an evil smirk as his eyes gleamed.

"And just what exactly are you hungry for, Commander?"

Carth stiffened, a pained look crossing his features and through the Force, Revan saw a flash of smoking rubble and a dying woman, beautiful but damaged. The woman's hair was a coppery brown and her skin was pale, too pale to be healthy. The atmosphere of the image was clogged with smoke and the former Dark Lord felt something stir in his heart at the flash through the Force. Shaking out of his last memory of his wife alive, Carth Onasi swallowed the lump in his throat, forcing a smile and a half-laugh.

"I- I'm just hungry. Let sleeping women be, I say."

Sleeping, the thought echoed in Revan's mind as he felt the shockwaves of the mental image burned forever into his mind. The emotion accompanying it, anger, betrayal, grief and a sense of failure so complete and desperation that seemed to steal his breath had drawn the look of amusement from Revan's face, leaving it blank. Carth caught the look, letting out a sigh as he sat down at the table with Revan, rubbing both hands over his face as he gave a half-laugh, half-sob. It came out more as a huff and the Telosian shook his head, grimacing at the memory of his family's demise.  
"I suppose you know I'm from Telos."

Revan nodded absently, keeping a flinch from his face. His throat was tightening and he felt like he might vomit. He was literally staring at the face of a victim of his own crimes and he couldn't form his own words, so we used words he thought his false identity would say. The emotions rolling off of the man were too familiar to ignore for they paralleled his own betrayal and pain in regards to Malak. As much as he hated to admit it, Malak's betrayal had hurt and not just his body.

"Telos... I- I take it you-"

Carth cut him off with a simple raised hand, nodding.

"Yes, had a family once. A wife and a son..."

The soldier trailed off, a strange look of despair mixed with resentment crossing the older man's face as Revan looked on, fascinated by the destructive power he had wielded in his prime. He'd ordered Telos be forced into submission by any means and while he hadn't fired the shots or given the specific orders, he'd sent Malak and Malak had in turn raised the world to ashes. Given Malak was quite insane at the time with pain and his own feelings of betrayal and anger it had been a waste in Revan's mind, not a tragedy. He'd never dwelled on the thought of how many people, innocent people had died because of his war, only of the numbers, the military resources he controlled. There were larger concerns at the time but then, with a frown, Revan wondered briefly if he'd been concerned about the wrong things. His Master Kreia had once told him that the true battle between the light and the dark was fought not on battlefields of space and earth and sky but of the mind and the heart. Darth Revan had stared into the dark abyss of the True Sith and had chosen to counter fire with fire. It was only a matter of time before his friends and comrades were burnt and in turn, they destroyed almost all they touched.

"My homeworld was one of the first planets to fall to Malak's fleet... The Sith bombed the planet into submission and there wasn't a damned thing the Republic forces could do to stop them!

Humbled slightly by the clashing thoughts, Revan spared Carth Onasi a blank look, unable to say anything. What could he say to a man who's wife and son he had killed, directly or not. He was still responsible and much as he was loathe to admit it, he was enjoying the company of the older man. It reminded him of his apprenticeship when he and Malak would raise Hell at the Enclave or the Temple and his genuine good mood had come to an abrupt and jarring halt at a simple, innocent... well, crude but joking comment. As Carth Onasi continued his painful tale of a lost wife and son, of a lost world and the betrayal of a close friend, Revan felt a kinship to the man he wanted to shun but didn't have the energy to. Ignoring his own crimes was easy so long as he was angry with others but when the anger was directed at himself, it muddled things up a bit and the once Darth Revan was humbled by the tale told of Telos IV's destruction at the hands of his once best friend Malak and Carth Onasi's mentor and former best friend, Admiral Saul Karath. A burning sensation was working its way up Revan's throat as he recalled congratulating Saul Karath, shaking his hand and commending the man for such a total victory. He'd even mockingly joked with Malak of the success. The next four worlds they had conquered had given up without a fight and he'd, as the Dark Lord of the Sith, been amused.

_"Guilt can be passed easily... but you know the truth."_

Indeed he knew it was his will, his hand that guided the destruction of Telos and a dozen other worlds and slowly, the deposed Dark Lord of the Sith listened to Carth's voice, flat and toneless as he described the end of his world, his family and his will to live. He hadn't outright said it but Revan knew the man lived only for revenge and to live only for revenge was a death sentence. Making the comparison with his own wish to take vengeance upon first the Jedi for not supporting him during the Mandalorian wars and then Malak for betraying him, Revan realized he had a lot in common with Carth Onasi. The thought was perverse and the former Dark Lord was not delusional enough to think himself a victim. If he was to be a victim at all he was a victim of his own crimes.

Carth had finished his tale with a description of holding his wife's lifeless body and unable to find his son's. The sense of failure and shame and absolute despair hung heavily in the Force and Revan found it a small wonder Malak could not sense the disturbance. Unwilling to speak, Revan said nothing, his mind playing over memories Carth Onasi did not know he had until he finally stood silently, laying a hand on the older man's shoulder and limped out of the apartment. The former Dark Lord of the Sith spent most of that afternoon in a Cantina booth, nursing a single drink and fighting off unwelcome and unfamiliar guilt. He didn't feel guilt, he didn't feel remorse. To second-guess his decisions was pointless. He couldn't change the past and he couldn't change who or what he was as simply as he couldn't move the stars. With a sigh of frustration, Revan Bloodraven finished off his single shot of Tarisian ale in a single take, his stomach turning at the thought of food. As Darth Revan and General Revan he never had the time or convenience to feel guilt. It was all numbers, lives, ships, worlds. Plans so subtle they required full concentration were put into effect and his military mind refused to see the innocents, the faces of those left to die by his decisions. Carth Onasi was a representation of those who'd lost because of him and Revan recalled the last time he had truly felt emotions as strongly as Carth Onasi had.

Malak's betrayal, Taya Kenobi's Exile from the Jedi Order, his own decision to fight. There was a finality to all those decisions that gave him little time to dwell. The mental image he'd kept in his head of the Mandalorian wars flashed before his mind and Revan stood, leaving some credits for the drink behind as he walked back to the apartment. The image of a young Cathar girl, beaten and starved and dirty would not leave his mind. He'd carried it as a distraction during the Mandalorian wars, a way of excusing the lives he was sacrificing with his commands for the greater good. As the Dark Lord of the Sith he'd recalled the all-encompassing darkness of the True Sith as his banner if you will. He refused to look at anything else and as a result, he'd become what he most despised, what he was trying to destroy.

_"In trying to destroy a monster... one must be careful not to become a monster."_

Wise words from his old Jedi Master Kreia and the former Dark Lord held in angry tears of frustration, shame and grief. He had no right to cry. Whether it was apparent to Revan or not, the thought of killing Carth Onasi or the Jedi should they inconvenience him was buried deep within his conflicted mind, lost to the horrifying images of his own crimes that would plague him till his last breath and beyond. Revan knew as he entered the apartment and nodded to Carth Onasi's blank face that he would never again be at peace.

"I'll take watch for the night. If you want to get some chow or a drink..."

Carth nodded absently, brushing past Revan and leaving the former Dark Lord alone with the unconscious Jedi. Seating himself on the cot with a sigh, Revan stared blankly at the comatose Jedi Knight, his mouth half-opened as if he wished to ask a question before he shook his head and leaned against the wall, his mind plaguing him with images of war he had long grown used to. The former Jedi Knight shuddered slightly as he realized it was not the image of Carth's dead wife that had shaken him so greatly, but the feeling in the Force he could identify with. He'd felt no shame until his mind had made the connection with the other man and the former Dark Lord of the Sith wondered if he truly was such a heartless monster. In his mind he'd always been doing what was for the good of the galaxy. A voice in his mind, sounding very much like his first Jedi Master Kreia echoed within his skull and Revan gritted his teeth in frustration and anger.  
_"The road to Hell is paved with good intentions..."_

A year ago, even weeks ago he would have scorned himself for feeling anything. Emotions were a weakness unless they gave you power and in his mind, Revan pushed aside his feelings, falling back into the cold, calculating embrace of a strategist's mind. In the end he'd saved more lives than he'd taken. He'd saved a hundred times over the lives he and Malak and the Sith had extinguished by opening the Republic's eyes to threats that existed outside of their member worlds. Still, it was little comfort to a man unaccustomed to emotions of any kind that resembled regret and the Mandalorian-born former Jedi was genuinely lost in his own thoughts as he debated the merits of his actions. To think of what he'd done, the appalling and despicable crimes he'd thrown upon the galaxy was simply maddening and it was something he shut out of his thoughts as he stood, carefully compensating for his injury as he worked through a calming martial arts kata known to him since he could barely walk. The Mandalorian motions drew the tenseness from his limbs and his heartbeat eased as he felt a sense of clarity, if not peace.

_"I have the power to change this... but do I really want do? Does it really matter?"_

Not really knowing if he cared enough to change the galaxy, Revan fell back on the familiar anger he felt towards the Jedi Council. Anger was an old friend, the only emotion he trusted and it was much more inviting than guilt. The young human felt Carth approaching and continued his katas, simplifying them to an Echani form taught to Republic soldiers and he and Carth said nothing for the rest of the night to one another, both simply lost in their own thoughts. Men weren't really the types to hold one another and have a good cry and the two dealt with the situation as they always had. Revan training his body and mind and Carth cleaning his blaster pistols as he thought of how sweet his revenge against Saul Karath would be once be discharged the powerfully modified blaster into his former mentor's face. Beside the two men, a young woman stirred, her dark blue eyes opening and closing against the harsh lightning of a Tarisian apartment before she groaned, wiping a hand over her eyes as her honey-blonde hair pooled around her. Carth and Revan both froze at the noise, turning to stare at the Jedi before she bolted upright in the cot and looked around wildly. The young woman's eyes met Carth's before moving to Revan's and the former Dark Lord of the Sith resisted the urge to sigh as the barest hint of recognition flashed in the azure pools.

_"Am I really going to have to kill these two?"_


	7. Chapter 6: A Balancing Act

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 6: A Balancing Act

The Force echoed, a sensation only a Master completely attuned to its will could sense. The tendrils of the all-encompassing energy folded upon itself, twisting as a myriad of feelings and colors and thoughts collided to prepare it to receive a new soul. The Force was preparing for death and only two in the Taris system could sense it. On the bridge of the _Leviathan_, Darth Malak stood with deceptive calm at the front of the bridge, his yellow-golden eyes flickering slightly as they moved left and right, studying the massive city that covered all of Taris' non-aquatic surface. Outside of the massive city of Taris seaports and underwater complexes that rivaled those of the Quarren and Mon Calamari from their shared homeworld peeked over glistening blue-green seas and the Dark Lord of the Sith felt the Force preparing itself to accept one of its servants.

_"Perhaps Bastila will soon be of no concern to me..."_

The voice in the tall human's head was not the one heard by the crew. If anything it sounded more like the cold, calculating voice of his former Master and Darth Malak tilted his head to the side, watching the Force coil as it prepared. Darth Bandon had failed him on the _Endar Spire_ and had come back without Bastila Shan, or her head. As a result, Darth Malak had punished his apprentice's failure and Bandon would prove ineffective for days, likely weeks with how pathetically weak the younger bald human was. The top of what remained of his lip curling in disgust, Malak's mind briefly toyed with the thought of simply killing Bandon and finding a new apprentice on Korriban. Feeling a faint stirring, Malak could sense a Jedi, possibly two on Taris' surface and the muscles in his ravaged face pulled as his eyes narrowed, gleaming against the light reflecting from the blue-green gem before him. He loathed Taris greatly, it was nothing but a pathetic wasteland of corruption and scum. The things he and Revan had seen on the world were unspeakable and Malak swore to himself he would bring it to an end once Bastila Shan was in his possession. He would cleanse Taris in fire once his purpose there was complete and he would move on to training a much more promising apprentice.

_"Surely anyone who could face Revan and leave unspoiled would make a worthy apprentice. Much more than that weakling Bandon."_

Bastila's first act as his new apprentice, Malak decided would be to kill Bandon. He didn't care if the fool was healed, conscious or already dying, so long as he would not be troubled by such incompetence again. A great tragedy that Malak's mind conformed to a likeness of his old Master's. Lost was love and compassion and remorse, leaving only hate, rage and disgust. Maimed by a friend, a brother, Malak's heart had hardened and his mind had fractured, leaving only a bitter creature with the ghost of the monster its torturer had been. Were the Jedi Revan had once been have looked upon Malak, he would have wept. Would the Dark Lord Revan have looked upon Malak, he would have laughed cruelly at the small, meaningless things that troubled his apprentice and should the man Revan was becoming have looked upon Malak, he would have felt nothing.

Jedi Knight Kaera Nurr, twenty six years after joining the Jedi Order as an infant found herself in a bit of a bind. Her aunt had once been a Jedi Knight, trained by the famed Jedi Master Ood Bnar on Ossus before its fall and commissioned by the Jedi Council near the close of the Great Sith War of Exar Kun to find and destroy the Terantek alongside several other Jedi Knights. The young woman's aunt had taken part in the Great Hunt as it became known, her fate becoming a mystery to the Dantooine Council as all who had taken part in the hunt's final stages on Korriban and Kashyyyk were never heard from again. Her features matched her aunt Shaela Nurr's almost frighteningly, and her dark blonde hair's golden shade nearly matched the healthy flush of her skin as she breathed in an out, her sharp blue eyes narrowing as they fell upon a black-clad man with shoulder length hair that regarded her with a tired look.

"Hey! Easy there. You've been unconscious for a few days. You were injured on the _Endar Spire_ and my companions and I brought you here... do- do you remember who you are?"

Turning her eyes from the black-clad man, Kaera's eyes focused on an older man who had dark brown hair and a neatly trimmed beard, though stubble from a few days was marring his otherwise clean look. The man wasn't quite as tall as the other but was by no means short. Taking in a breath, the Jedi brought her hand to her chest, grimacing as a dull ache shot through her. The black-clad man had his hands crossed behind his back, unnoticed by either Carth or the Jedi his right hand was pushing up the back of his red leather vest, revealing the lightsaber hidden at the base of his silver armored breastplate.

"I- Kaera Nurr."

Revan recalled the name of a Jedi before his time involved in the Great Hunt years before and he felt the Force coiling around him, preparing for him to simply strike. The Jedi was weakened, dazed and confused but that would not last and as soon as she came to that realization, Revan wound pounce, killing her instantly before she could become a threat and then he would kill Carth. Ignoring the way his hands tightened at that thought, Revan kept his mind clear, survival first in his mind before anything else. He'd made a mess of things but he was by no means suicidal or willing to leave himself at someone else's mercy.

"You... you were that soldier on the _Spire_, right? With the Echani?"

Revan recalled Trask Ulgo and eased his hand away from the hidden lightsaber, putting a false but convincing smile on his face. Part of Revan felt like the lowest filth that could exist in the plagued Undercity but he kept his feelings locked away, projecting a simple sense of relief.

"Yes though... I'm sorry to say Ensign Ulgo didn't make it."

The smile on Revan's face fell to the look he really wanted to show and his face became blank, his eyes hardening as he made a quick assessment of his situation. He wouldn't have to kill the Jedi or Carth and they could serve his purpose, aiding in his search for Bastila and a way off of Taris. The Jedi's disorientation only grew when her hands reached absently to her belt, a stirring of panic flowing through the Force as she searched frantically for her lightsaber.

_"The greatest flaw of the Jedi."_

Revan thought to himself, moving to the side to give the Jedi a line of sight to her missing weapon. Kaera sighed in relief when she spotted the weapon on a workbench and she reached her hand out, the Force stirring as she pulled the weapon to her hand. The Jedi seemed to grimace and her concentration broke, the saber dropping back to the workbench. Revan mentally shook his head as he briefly extended his shielding to include the Jedi.

"I don't know much about the Force but... won't the Sith sense that?"

Confusion was on the Jedi's face as she moved her eyes from studying her lightsaber to looking at Carth. The Jedi recognized the man as the Commander of the _Endar Spire_ and frowned, a small worry line forming between her eyebrows.   
"Wh- what do you mean?"

Revan and Carth exchanged tired looks.

"Your show."

Revan muttered, limping slightly as he seated himself next to the workbench, forcing himself to keep an annoyed glare from his face. Sure she'd been in a healing trance for two days, sure she was likely to be confused after her ordeal but Revan's patience had limits. He'd had the same training before he'd gone to fight the Mandalorians and he hadn't had the luxury of a chance to be confused before a bunch of burly armor clad likely distant relatives came after him. Recalling the few Mandalorian women he'd fought, Revan shuddered as he felt a familiar ache along his back where one had by some strange miracle of warrior prowess actually gotten behind him in a fight and nearly cut him in two. Mandalorians as a whole were deadly but you never, never faced their women alone. Something he'd known but hadn't really had the luxury of practicing. Battles were more chaotic than not during the war and he knew not to take anything at face value.

"The _Endar Spire_ and her battle group was destroyed by a Sith battle fleet. After you were injured, Ensign Katarn and Ensign Ulgo, the Echani tried their best to get you off the ship after Bastila's escape pod was away. It was pretty touch and go there for a while but Tauryn here managed to make it with you to the escape pods and we made it to Taris' surface. Which brings me to the next point. Taris is under Sith control, they've quarantined the planet and their fleet is orbit forming a massive blockade. If the intelligence reports from Fleet Command were correct the Sith have likely already deployed a net of automated weapons satellite platforms and only ships transmitting the Sith code can make it past the stratosphere without being vaporized..."  
Carth allowed Kaera a moment to absorb the information and the young Jedi Knight rubbed her eyes with a tired look crossing her face. Revan smirked mentally as he wondered how anyone could be tired after sleeping for three days before he felt himself yawning and cursed as it drew the attention of the Jedi back to him.

"I- I remember you helping me with that Sith on the _Spire..._ I- I guess I owe you- both of you my life. Thank you."

Revan's face was carefully neutral as he heard the genuine sincerity in the woman's voice. She was actually of the impression that he was a bleeding heart and had saved her because it was the right thing to do. He'd only saved her because it suited him. As if he'd ever condescend to saving one of his enemies when he had nothing to gain. Rolling his eyes as he brushed a hand over his face, obscuring the gesture, Revan stood, pain flaring faintly in his left leg. Ignoring the stabbing of pain from the self-inflicted lightsaber burn, Revan merely grimaced as he projected pain through the Force, simulating what a Jedi would sense if someone was hurt and spoke, his grimace being replaced by a stony expression. His voice was completely toneless, flat and cold. A voice he had grown accustomed to as the Dark Lord of the Sith.

"Do you still need time to recover or are you well enough to move about?"

Revan's voice was in what many would refer to as soldier-mode. A no-nonsense tone that brokered nothing but absolute truth and cooperation. Carth's slightly appreciative expression at the Jedi's thanks turned to a curious, slightly respectful look. Tauryn Katarn in Carth's mind wasn't wasting any time and had an understanding of just how dire their situation was. That he could appreciate.

"I- I have a bit of a headache but nothing a simple meditation or some pain killers couldn't fix. My chest is aching a little but its more of a dull ache... nothing too serious..."

The Jedi's blue eyes were bright with a suppressed pain and Revan knew the girl was still in a fairly good amount of pain. Nothing crippling but enough to be a distraction. Making a split-second decision, Revan stalked with a slight limp to the Jedi's bedside, thumping his left hand on the Jedi's chest, directly where the puncture had been. The Jedi hissed in pain, the Force flaring as it echoed the pain around her and Revan frowned at the girl, kneeling so he was eye-level with her. Behind Revan, Carth Onasi had moved his right hand to his blaster pistol, watching the exchange with a look of confusion and apprehension. Tears of pain glittered in the Jedi's blue eyes as she clutched where Revan had lightly struck her and she wheezed slightly, excess air in her chest cavity making the simple gesture of breathing painful.

"You suffered from a punctured lung. I am sorry for having to do that but we can't afford to have you slowing us down. As of two days ago the Sith were in total control of the upper levels of Taris and Bastila is MIA. Focus on the big, galactic picture here if you will. Bastila Shan is the only thing, the _only_ thing stopping Darth Malak and his Sith. We all know the numbers he is throwing at us are growing. We will be overwhelmed within weeks if Bastila Shan is not at the front line, using her Jedi powers to sway the war in our favor. We need to find her, we _need_ to be prepared. It will not be easy and you have to be at one hundred percent."

Taking charge of the situation, Revan laid down the simple facts in a blunt and rude manner. Seeing the glare in the Jedi's eyes soften slightly as the truth in his words ran their course, Kaera nodded mutely, still trying to regain her composure. Revan, sensing the Jedi searching her own body through the Force and mending her ailments withdrew a step, standing to his full height and ignoring the troubled look Carth was giving him. He'd had enough of moping about in a dark, dank hole and he wasn't going to waste any more of his precious time for Malak's Sith to find Bastila, or worse, someone else to get to the Padawan and kill her, which would likely result in Malak glassing Taris anyways for being denied his prize. A mental scowl worked its way on Revan's mental image of himself as he realized he was going well out of his way to save Bastila Shan. It was not required of him to have others annoying him as he searched but the presence of a veteran pilot and soldier as well as a Jedi Knight if the lack of a braid could be taken into account had kept him from running off on his own.

_"I'm bloody contradicting myself... but this Jedi I hold no debt to... Bastila... Bastila Shan saved my life and I will in turn save hers... Then I'll bloody kill the troublesome wench myself."_

Mentally cursing as he realized he'd actually need Bastila alive and well to slow Malak's destructive advance, Revan closed off his mind, projecting a sense of anxiety and a slight flare of guilt that the Jedi would sense from him. He couldn't very well let down his mental shielding and show what he really was or the girl would likely start screaming some nonsense about pure evil or the Sithari or something and he most definitely did not want to have his sensitive hearing damaged by screaming. Amused slightly at his own sense of humor, Revan briefly wondered what had become of his trustworthy assassination droid HK-47 before mentally shaking off the thought. He'd sent the droid to kill some foolish Mandalorian renegade who was prancing around the Outer Rim with a rusted Mandalorian mask and calling himself Mandalore. Mandalore was a title reserved for the bearer of Mandalore's mask or of the one who had defeated the last Mandalore in combat and that was a title Revan had earned through blood and pain and likely a good chunk of his sanity.

_"If I'm Mandalore... Oh Bugger if HK comes gunning for me I will definitely scrap that rust heap."_

A mental chuckle, evil in its tone echoed in Revan's skull and he fixed his attention from his scattered thoughts to the speaking Jedi before him.

"...managed to undo most of the damage to my body... If we are on a Sith world I will have to disguise my presence in the Force or we may risk discovery. I'll likely not be able to use my lightsaber... shame but I won't bring the risk upon us unless absolutely necessary."

Revan nodded with Carth at the Jedi's assessment. A quick and powerful healing trance had restored her health and after a meal and likely a bit of exercise she'd be back to normal.

"I am sorry about earlier..."

Revan schooled his features to actually look sorry, though he was really just bored inside. Projecting a bit of self-disgust and shame, not too hard after his little pity-party with Carth, Revan saw the Jedi's eyes flicker with understanding as to his harsh approach and she gave a small smile that brought real feelings of shame and disgust to Revan as he realized he was actually sorry for causing her pain. She was a Jedi, yes but he had no personal quarrel with her... merely a difference of opinions on the same issue and the former Dark Lord of the Sith sighed, his mental shields impenetrable as he moved to the workbench, cautiously picking up the Jedi's lightsaber as if it would explode and handing it to the young woman. The Jedi's small smile grew slightly before she brushed a hand through her disheveled hair and ran her fingers across the lightsaber, her eyes critically and professionally examining its casing.

"Looks to have survived... though I suppose your leg can't say the same thing?"

The Jedi retaliated to Revan's earlier method of exposing her weakness in kind, much to Revan's shock by planting the toe of her brown boot directly on the field dressing over the lightsaber wound he'd purposely given himself to calm Carth's suspicions. Pain erupted in Revan's leg and he dropped like a rock, a loud curse in Mando'a escaping his lips as he frantically grabbed the side of the table, stopping himself from getting a face-full of floor. The Jedi's grin had vanished and a concerned, slightly guilty look crossed her face while Carth, not helping the matter at all cackled at the scene.

_"Adenn chakaar!!" (Roughly translated: Heartless bitch.)_

Revan grasped his injury, pulling his automatic response to kill the Jedi where she stood and hissed as pain burned along his wound.

"Oh! Are- are you alright?"

Small hands grasped his shoulders and black rage flashed across Revan's eyes as they flickered with a sickly yellow-gold gleam. The Force slipped slightly and a ripple echoed outward, causing Revan to curse himself for not having sensed the Jedi's intentions. Oh he could admit it was funny; Hell he was laughing at himself at that very moment but he was also so surprised by the action that a fracture in his mental shielding sent out a ripple through the Force. The ripple wasn't enough to be concerned about Malak suddenly appearing at the doorway and murdering them all with ease, more an echo of what he'd once been, confined to only the locality of his aura. The Jedi would have seen it, knowing instantly he was Force sensitive and that would make his life much more annoying. Now instead of following his own plans for how to find Bastila he'd have to act as if he were consulting the Force on an instinctual level and that was just blood boring. Not to mention he'd have to follow a rough pattern of what it was laying out for him.

"Shut up Carth or I'll blast you."

Carth continued to laugh as the Jedi's hands guided Revan to a seat and the former Dark Lord exhaled slowly, allowing a chuckle and a smile to replace the pained, angry look he had been sporting. The Jedi knelt before Revan, leaning forward to remove the bandage while Revan sighed to himself, leaning back and allowing the young woman to have a look. Blood was seeping through where she'd kicked him, breaking the healing skin along the burn and the Jedi's eyes widened as she realized what she was looking at.

"Oh Force! I am so sorry... Ensign, I-"

Revan chuckled mentally at the Jedi forgetting his false name. Realizing the girl likely thought he'd gotten the injury rescuing her and bringing her unconscious and to that point completely worthless carcass to Taris, Revan decided to play an age old game men had played for eons. He milked it.

"If this is the thanks I get for saving you life I think I'll pass the next time that opportunity comes along."

Wiping the amusement from his face, Revan wore a sullen expression as he gave the Jedi kneeling in front of him a glare. The Jedi's cheeks flushed slightly and she stammered an apology while Revan took on an offended look.

"Wait a second. Ensign? I save your bloody life and you don't even make a mental note of my name?"

Carth wasn't even bothering to hide his amusement as he held his sides, a relaxed and amused gleam coloring his eyes as he continued to cackle.

"Sir-"

Revan cut the Jedi off, seeing frustrated tears forming in her eyes. He was projecting real anger and realizing, Revan reigned it in, allowing a small amount of amusement come through his shielding.

"Tauryn Katarn. That is the name! Is it really so hard to remember? Half of bloody Alderaan is named Katarn!"

Sensing that the man had calmed and was toying with her, Kaera frowned, unsure of how to react. The woman's soft features were marred with worry lines and Revan, despite his massive amount of self-control, found his eyes wandering over the woman's athletic form as she shifted. He wasn't too concerned with physical intimacy as some of the other Fallen Jedi had become. His obsession had always been destroying the Truth Sith and the few distractions he had allowed himself were passionate, yes but with no lasting attachments to the women. Still, he was a man and the Jedi kneeling in front of him, redressing his now bleeding wound was pleasing to look at. Feeling the need for a distraction from his stress, which seemed to increase ten-fold with the addition of the Jedi, Revan turned his thoughts to his goals. Bastila needed to be found, secured and-

"Carth, I'm not joking. I will shoot you if you don't stop laughing."

Revan turned his attention from a rather interesting mental image of Bastila Shan that had begun to form in his mind, partially due to his Mandalorian nature of liking women who had kicked his ass... or tried to and his eyes narrowed into a cold glare he cast at the still-laughing Republic Commander. Carth waved his hand, shaking his head and Revan felt a bit of vindication at giving the man some joy. Feeling his shoulders trembling slightly, Revan chuckled, laughing along with Carth and the Jedi soon followed, her soft voice adding to the men's deep roaring laughs as they all had a good long laugh.

"The neighbors probably think we're insane."

Carth muttered, wiping tears from his eyes. It had felt rejuvenating to laugh so hard, something he'd desperately needed as the grim truth of their situation was setting in. The almost polar change in his fellow soldier's attitude had been a bit vexing at first but he found an almost instinctual understanding of the younger human. He was picking up the slack as the leader, a job which in truth the Jedi or Carth would have been more qualified for with what he knew but Carth found he didn't mind following the younger man's orders. Tauryn Katarn as Carth and the Jedi Kaera knew him had given them all a good start in a bleak situation behind enemy lines and Carth valued the man's discipline as well as his laid-back manner. It was a paradox almost, but it gave him confidence in the plan and faith in the leader, Tauryn Katarn.

"I daresay we should probably find me some new clothing."

Revan finished off his laughing with a wheezing chuckle, gesturing to the table beside him.

"I look the liberty of finding you an outfit. Armor, modest and practical."

Kaera seemed to realize she had been unconscious for three days around two men and a faint flush colored her cheeks as she nodded shakily. Unfamiliar with some aspects, the Jedi had to compensate for lack of understanding by what others said of such matters and she wondered briefly if she'd been taken advantage of. It was a completely un-Jedi-like thought but Kaera Nurr was human, and a young woman to boot and such thoughts could not often times be helped. As if he sensed her thoughts, Kaera saw Revan lean in closer to her, speaking in a low whisper as his face grew deathly serious.

"I may have taken the liberty, but not the advantage."

Recalling his crude joke to Carth about the unconscious Jedi, Revan cringed mentally. He'd joked about something that even as Darth Revan disgusted him to no end. Mandalorians did not take advantage of women, they did not rape. The honor-obsessed structure of their society absolutely forbade the mere thought. Mandalorians trained their women to be more fierce warriors than the men so they would be able to control their own fates and that was something that never left Revan's mind. There were few honor-less Mandalorians who'd taken liberties but it was such a small amount that it could scarcely be considered a part of the Mandalorian's society as many other cultures mistakenly believed. It couldn't even be considered a handful. Any honorable Mandalorian warrior seeking glory would much prefer to fall on his own blade than take part in such honor-less, weak behavior. Weakness of the mind or body was what the Mandalore believed the greatest evils and if one couldn't control themself, how could one consider themself a true warrior?

"I should go freshen up."

Kaera stated, pulling Revan from his grim thoughts. He'd gone absolutely insane when he'd first been on Taris because of the corruption and many of the Jedi with him had as well. There were likely still decomposing bodies, dismembered by lightsabers still rotting far below Taris' upper levels where the Jedi that had followed Revan to war had exercised a bit of vigilante justice on the slavers and overall scum that had gathered on Taris. Scum, Revan was truly sad to say the Sith under his command that later followed Malak were becoming. The strong survive and the weak perish was not exactly enlightened and cheerful rhetoric and the Sith were becoming ridiculously corrupt without the threat of instant death that Revan promised should he catch anyone in such a compromising position. Revan allowed his mental barrier to show his true and genuine horror at such an act and he'd seen in Kaera's eyes that she believed him. As memories of mass murder, torture and wars long over and not yet begun flashed across Revan's mind, he took comfort in the knowledge that he retained some honor. It was a small comfort to the fear he'd seen in Kaera's eyes. A fear he'd seen written in the faces of Jedi he'd tortured viciously to suit his purposes, of minds he'd all but ripped apart. With a heavy sigh, Revan wondered if there really was a line between destroying a mind and body and the crime he so despised.

Darth Malak was bored and growing more bored by the moment. Sure being an evil overlord of a galaxy-spanning Empire had its perks but it also had its down sides. One such downside was tolerating the countless incompetents surrounding him who were charged with but finding a single Jedi Padawan. That even common Republic soldiers evaded capture on Taris brought to the forefront of the Dark Lord's mind a simple truth. His soldiers were expendable and if they could not find Bastila, when his patience finally ran out he would have their incompetence forever buried in the ruins and ashes of Taris. The pathetic world would no longer plague his mind with visions of horrors long ago buried beneath even greater horrors and he would move to another world, cleansing its filth in the fire of his fleet's turboblasters. Two gleaming golden-yellow eyes narrowed as if in thought and Darth Malak continued to study Taris, reaching out with his dark power and searching, ever searching for a solution to his problems. Bastila would be but a single step, riding himself of Bandon's incompetence would be but one more step towards a greater end.

Bastila Shan groaned weakly as she opened her eyes. Memories long buried beneath years of Jedi training plagued her minds. A vision of a distant world, her homeworld Talravin. The kind face of her father and the stern features of her mother, scolding her for some long forgotten childish thing. A smile worked its way on the Padawan's lips as she recalled her father, the loving warmth and feeling of security he invoked in those long-buried memories before a flash of a burning world, the demonic visage of a fallen Jedi Knight glared at her, golden-yellow eyes reaching out from a destroyed mind to kill her. The neural disruptor fitted to the Jedi Padawan's neck was doing what it was made to do, clouding the rational thoughts of a conscious being with memories buried deep within the subconscious and a child-like whimper escaped the Padawan as she curled into a ball in her cell, locked away to be bartered as a trophy for the Swoop Bike Championships. The demon of her nightmares, Revan reached for her and the Padawan's mind shied away, the bond she created when saving the Sith Lord's life flaring in response to the interference. The Force willed the bond, though it was created in no small part on Bastila Shan's part.

"N- no! G- Go away!"

The Padawan's incoherent words were lost in her delirium and she remained haunted by memories her own and memories of a man she'd saved from certain death. Memories Revan himself cringed at from time to time. The Force had a will of its own, ever seeking balance and it saw a once bright aura of one of its greatest servants clouded in a darkness so cold the sum of his noble actions before a simple four year reign of terror and destruction had to be reversed for the balance to be maintained. If nothing else, the Force sought balance. For the Force was a force of nature and balance was of the utmost importance. A storm was brewing within the Force, the loss of the True Sith a thousand years before causing chaos as the light gained in strength. Many uprisings of Dark Jedi and wars of beings weak or relatively blind to the Force had sated the imbalance but like lightning seeking ground, the Force stretched out, twisting against itself as events unfolded, wars were fought and at the center of all this, a former Jedi and a former Dark Lord was placed, like a pawn for the Force's will. Intangible and lacking any sentient thought, the Force could not influence the mind of sentients as a Jedi or Sith could through Force-manipulation. Instead, the Force merely showed its favor to the weaker side, granting the weakened darkness its gargantuan power, creating stronger, more powerful Sith and weakening the Light of the Jedi that had reigned almost supreme for a thousand years.

Balance. It was what made the threat of the True Sith so great, what gave Revan and the Dark Jedi he once controlled the destructive strength to overcome the Mandalorians. The Mandalorians were but a symptom of this force of nature, their own wish for glory driving them to destroy and strengthen the darkness that grew, gathering with the True Sith beyond the borders of the known galaxy where they waited, preparing to wipe out the Jedi and the Republic that had defeated them before in one glorious assault. Revan's first Jedi Master, the once librarian of the Archives Kreia knew of this. Through her teachings she sought to teach Revan the subtleties his actions caused, the ends of his actions rippling outward and touching others, who in turn spread their own actions, strengthening the weaker side of the Force. Revan had failed to understand the scope of the threat, giving the enemy, the darkness a name and form in the True Sith but the True Sith were mere pawns of a greater game. The true battle between light and dark was not fought on fields of battles as soldiers and warriors thought of them, but in the hearts and minds of all beings, of all life. And it sought ever to gain balance, to be at peace with itself.

Jedi Knight Kaera Nurr exited the fresher donned in a light blue powered battlesuit with a light durasteel breastplate and other light armored plates placed around the battlesuit smartly to provide ease of movements but also a small amount of protection from blades and shrapnel. Her Jedi robes folded in a tight, neat little pile, Kaera still wore her lightsaber at her waist as she knelt down near the workbench, adding her robes to the growing pile of conspicuous armor and items that couldn't simply be thrown out for fear of discovery.

"There's an extra sword in there, light and curved, Echani design I believe."

Kaera looked over to whom she believed was called Tauryn Katarn, nodding politely. The man's intuitive sense was somewhat lacking but could be frighteningly clear at times. She'd sensed his outburst of Force-energy and the pulls on the Force when he was in deep thought and she realized he might be a much more valuable ally than a simple soldier. The man had an amazing array of skills from what she'd seen and she was quite sure there were more that were just waiting to be revealed. Checking through the _junk_ as Tauryn had called it, Kaera spotted a cylindrical tube, inconspicuously labeled as a kolto pack. Grinning, the Jedi opened the cylinder, seeing only a relatively dry film of remnant kolto before her grin turned to a relieved smile. Out of the corner of her eye she spotted Tauryn approaching her with a light-looking but powerful blaster rifle and she wave the tube at him with a smile.

"Looks like I've found a place to hide my saber."

Revan raised a brow at the cheery tone in the young woman's voice. He was more used to Jedi speaking in grave, downright depressing tones and it was, dare he say refreshing? Smiling patiently, Revan showed the Jedi the workings of the blaster rifle as well as a folding stock and a selector switch for rapid-fire or semi-automatic fire. Handing the young woman a bandolier with extra power packs for the blaster and the light, curved Echani blade he's procured quite illegally, Revan watched with detached amusement as the Jedi took a torn section fo cloth from his old uniform, wiped the inside of the container clean and then tore another good chunk of cloth free, wrapping her blade carefully and making certain it fit snug with the container.

"Won't that shift and maybe trigger?"  
Revan asked, adding some unease to his voice as the origin of his injury was loudly declared to Kaera by Carth. Kaera smiled, shaking her head as she fitted the 'kolto' tube to her belt beside her blade and explained.

"I have a switch housing that covered the activation switch. It must be flipped up and them the switch must be depressed to activate the blade."

Revan found himself nodding in approval. Once active the blade would remain until the switch was pressed again or the trigger was manipulated through the Force. There could be advantages to the Jedi's unique design and the former Sith Lord found himself appreciating the fact he hadn't had to kill Carth or Kaera just yet. They were an interesting pair and he could call his experiences with them enlightening and that was only after two days.

_"Kill them or keep them, Revan. Kill them or keep them."_

Shrugging off his internal monologue, the three humans made their way to the door, double-checking their equipment and gear before moving out of the apartment and into the complex.

AN: I hope you all liked my take on the whole Balance issue. I've been kicking that idea around in my head for a while and after sorta doing a quick review of the Star Wars universe, including the new comics set 130 years ABY (Battle of Yavin in Episode IV) The whole Chosen One thing I never really liked or bought. Just... too ridiculous I guess, even for my often ridiculous imagination. Plus the Chosen One and the prophesy states that the Chosen One will bring balance to the Force, destroying the Sith. With Anakin Skywalker dead at the end of Episode VI it should have been the end of the Sith and the darkside of the Force as a threat. Of course we would have to ignore all of the Jedi Academy stuff, the Valley of the Jedi the Dark Lord of the Sith Flint and the Dark Lady of the Sith Luminaya, both of whom were pretty much remnants of Palpatine and Vader's Sith Order being Emperor's Hands. Oh another BIG thing we'd have to ignore would be the Star Wars Legacy comics which are the ones that take place 130 years after the movies. In that a group of Sith, SITH attack the Jedi Temple of Ossus established by Luke Skywalker. So yea, I tend to ignore the Chosen One's mystical BS and view the Force more as a natural occurrence... hope that's not too confusing... cause I'm confused now... And people want to make the argument of an unbroken line of Sith Lords but look at the gap between the Great Hyperspace War and Freedon Nadd. I just see it like shifting tides, human nature expanded to a galactic level and pushed to two convenient sides. I'm all for the Gray Jedi deal, not the evil Sith or flawless Jedi extremes.


	8. Chapter 7: Sleeping With the Enemy

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 7: Sleeping With the Enemy

Revan came to a halt outside of the door, staring incredulously at the Sith patrol that was not even ten yards from their front door. He hadn't sensed them due mainly to the distraction his leg was causing and his rampant thoughts. Without sparing an explanation to Carth or Kaera of his abrupt halt, Revan backpedaled out of sight as the Sith Commander of the patrol, the only living sentient amongst them as the patrol was made up of an assault droid began badgering two unfortunate Duro.

"Problem?"  
Carth asked, an annoyed look crossing his face while the Jedi focused her thoughts, reaching out through the Force subtly and sensing the Sith patrol. A frown worked on the Jedi's features as she readied her blaster rifle, a general understanding of the weapon existing in her mind but otherwise uncertain of whether she could actually hit anything with it or not. Revan didn't seem to mind using a blaster as he drew his sonic pistol, smirking as he lined the sight up with the Sith's head. Before Revan could get off a shot one of the Duro rounded on the Sith that had he and his companion lined against the wall and shouted something Revan didn't really catch. The Sith immediately opened fire, killing the Duro instantly and turning his weapon to the other Duro while other aliens milled about, looking angry and at the same time frightened.

"That's how we Sith deal with smart-mouthed aliens. Now the rest of you, up against the wall!"

Shaking his head, Revan calmly squeezed off a single shot with his pistol, striking the Sith in the head. The Sith staggered, blood coming out of his ears and his eyes as the sonic pulse of the blaster struck him and he looked over at Revan in a daze.

"Wha- what's this? Humans hiding out with aliens? They're Republic fugitives! Kill them!"

Not really understanding how the man had gotten so many words out of his mouth before he'd got a second shot off, Revan moved from the apartment's doorway, rolling into a crouch and shooting his sonic pistol again at the man. The Sith, an olive-skinned human in his mid-thirties wearing a simple gray Sith Lieutenant's uniform was struck directly in the chest by the second sonic blast and staggered, dropping to his knees as the high-charged sonic blast caused internal bleeding. Sonic blasters operated on a completely separate principle of the more common blaster bolts used as standard issue amongst the Sith and Republic. Sonic blasts were designed more for crowd and riot suppression, not quite as effective as stun bolts against unarmored and unshielded individuals they, unlike stun-bolts that stunned targets, causing their bodies to go numb, caused pain. Lining up for a third shot, Revan kept a smirk on his face as the Sith officer struggled against the pain in his body and lined his blaster rifle up with Revan. Flicking a switch on the side of his pistol, Revan felt the small blaster vibrate with its charge and shot a third blast into the Sith. The air in front of Revan's pistol distorted and a white cone-shaped sonic bolt hit the Sith's weapon arm, causing the Sith to drop his blaster rifle. The entire exchange after the first shot had taken two seconds.

Carth Onasi leveled one of his blaster pistols on the humanoid form of the assault droid, flicking the fire indicator to ion as he shot pure white, orb-shaped blasts into the droid. The armored casing of the droid, designed to stop the more conventional blaster bolts could do nothing as it merely helped to absorb the energy of the ion blasts. Lightning charged around the droid as translucent blue-white scars marred its armored surface and its arms lowered, its mechanical eyes dimming as it hunched over, disabled. Carth moved from his position, finishing off the Sith Revan seemed to be enjoying shooting with a single Ion-blast to the head. The Sith's eyes rolled back, revealing only blood-shot white and he collapsed to the floor, dead from the point-blank ion shot from Carth's weapon. Carth's intervention on Revan's first shot took only a second longer and the smoke from the blaster's discharges began to clear as the aliens milling about the apartment complex took in the scene in shock. Kaera, having shouldered her blaster rifle was equally shocked at the speed and efficiency of her two companions. They'd killed the Sith and disabled the droid almost instinctively and it was as impressive as it was disturbing.  
"Are you alright?"

Carth asked, approaching the Duro that had been one of the Sith's victims. The Duro looked down on its dead companion with a look of despair as he brushed its large bulbous blue-black eyes, lamenting over its companion's meaningless death. Obviously the prospect of Sith taunting the alien locals was not a new thing and Kaera looked on with a twinge of sorrow. Revan moved to the dead Duro's side, making sure to 'accidentally' kick the dead Sith Lieutenant as he passed. Checking for vitals and finding none, Revan sighed, standing and regarding the aliens that had gathered around them with concern. The Sith would definitely miss a patrol if the planet was on lock-down and the aliens might turn them in for fear of their own lives. Reaching out subtly through the Force, only allowing the Jedi to sense a bit of uncertainty from him, Revan subtly scanned the gathered aliens minds. Most were afraid but underlying the fear was a sense of justification and relief.

_"I can take care of the body... make it look like they died elsewhere."_

The Duro spoke in its native language to Carth and the Republic soldier nodded solemnly as various aliens; Duro, Twi'lek and Quarren mostly moved to remove the evidence of battle. After shaking the hands of most of the aliens gathered, Carth, Revan and Kaera moved on, all letting out a relieved sigh.

"This is insane."

Carth muttered bitterly. A tone he often used since the destruction of his homeworld. Revan nodded absently, troubled at how close the Sith had been to their hideout. Stopping as he sensed a subtle tremor in the Force, the former Sith Lord cast a side-long glance at the door to his right. The Jedi apparently sensed the disturbance as well and was regarding Revan carefully, a tiny furrow to her brow.

_"I'm almost certain he is Force-sensitive... He must have a great strength in the Force if he is able to sense it on such a basic level so easily..."_

Kaera's thoughts trailed off as Revan turned to regard her with a curious look.

"I have a bad feeling suddenly..."

Carth gave a sarcastic snort, motioning to the bodies and wreckage behind them being carefully cleared away.

"I think your bad feeling is a little late."

The Republic soldier muttered with a half-glare. Amusing as the statement was he didn't feel like laughing after just witnessing a brutal murder at the hands of his enemies. It just brought up too many bad memories. Sensing Carth's train of thought, Revan swallowed a lump in his throat, covering up the nervous gesture with a simple clearing of his throat as he moved up to the side of the doorway adjacent to their own apartment. Tilting his head, Revan exchanged a look with what Carth would eventually refer to as another member of the Force-only club and nodded to the doorway.

"What do you think, Kaera?"

Revan asked. The blonde Jedi frowned, shifting her blaster rifle so it was hanging from a shoulder-strap over her left shoulder and shrugged.

"I sensed a disturbance in the Force, coming from that room."

Revan, having sensed it as well covered himself as Carth gave him a suspicious look.

"I just have a bad feeling, hokey religions aside... There could be more Sith in there... a single Lieutenant and a battle droid isn't much of a patrol, regardless of how thin the Sith are spread and we can't take the chance with all these innocents around."

Carth, his grim look easing slightly at the barb to the Force sent by his fellow soldier figured it wouldn't hurt. Glancing at the Jedi, Carth followed her calculating look back to Tauryn Katarn and sighed, passing the Jedi's suspicion off as mere annoyance at the insult to the Jedi's 'hokey religion.'

"You two just going to be vague and stare at each other or are you going to do something about it?"

The Jedi, taking charge moved to the door and knocked. A muffled 'go away' was heard before she knocked again. A disgruntled looking human woman, likely in her early thirties with light brown hair answered. Her expression was one of annoyance and suspicion and it immediately shifted straight to suspicion as she eyed the appearance of the three humans at her door.

"What do 'you' want?"

Revan, sensing a bit of fear under the woman's voice raised a brow. The woman was obviously a hunted individual and he wondered briefly if there was a bounty on her head he could exploit for more money. The woman, looking more and more uneasy with the calculating look Revan was giving her swallowed and was about to shut and lock the door before Carth, feeling some pity for the woman intervened.

"There was a bit of a scuffle with some Sith out here. We were just checking to make sure everyone was alright."

The gentle tone Carth used seemed to coax the woman and she eyed the oldest of the three humans at her doorway with a thoughtful look.

"I suppose it was you who did the scuffling?"  
The woman asked primly, causing Revan to roll his eyes while the Jedi was regarding Carth with a respectful look at his quick thinking. It was obvious the woman had troubles with the Sith if she were living in an alien district and she knew his reasoning was sound. Especially if they were humans that it wouldn't raise too much suspicion that they weren't involved one way or the other with the Sith Patrol.

"We're just trying to get by, Ma'am."

Carth stated, soldier-like. Revan's eyes unconsciously rolled again as he turned from the scene and stalked away. Kaera and the woman, Dia began speaking quietly and Carth decided to let the Jedi's trained diplomacy take the forefront of the problem. Dia spoke of how she was hiding out amongst the aliens because a bounty had been placed on her head by a local thug named Holdan. A lackey of the local Exchange boss. Speaking to the Jedi about how the man had tried to force himself on her and how she had replied with a vibroblade, scarring the man, she took in the sympathetic looks from Carth and Kaera and relaxed slightly, though she had no idea where the third human had gone off to. The Jedi and Carth reassured Dia that they'd find and speak to Holdan about dropping the bounty and left the woman behind, moving into the hallway and spotting Revan coming quickly towards them

"Checked the rest of this floor, no Sith. We should all re-encrypt out communicators and find a secure frequency. I'm sure the Sith have managed to slice into the Spire's records."

Knowing for a fact the Sith likely had, Revan allowed Carth to soak in the information. The Commander nodded his consent, glancing at the Jedi at his side. Kaera saw the wisdom in the precaution and pulled back her wrist guard to reveal a wrist-communicator common amongst Jedi.

"The Jedi frequencies would be too dangerous as well... with the number of Jedi falling to the Darkside."

Revan wisely kept his mouth closed, stopping himself from laughing cruelly. Of course they had the Jedi's supposedly secure frequencies.

"We should sync them on a randomly modulating pattern, that way if the Sith can catch one of our signals it would change before they get any worth-while information."

Carth stated, causing Revan's respect of the man to rise slightly.

"Good call. So what was that lady's deal?"

Revan asked, syncing his head-mounted communicator with Carth's and the Jedi's. Strapping the dual-purpose communicator and scanner to his left ear, Revan blinked against the tiny red lense that displayed a simple area scan of his surroundings before switching the display to monitor known Sith communication channels. The display moved to a simple outline of Sith signals in the general area, represented by waving single straight lines. Switching the device to combat-mode, Revan saw a display showing his laser-sight on his pistol as well as a heads-up targeting interface and relaxed slightly. His old mask had a similar display though much more sophisticated and it was relaxing to have a bit of backup when using an unfamiliar blaster pistol. Hearing the Jedi speaking, Revan glanced at her out of the corner of his right eye, seeing a curious look on her face as she saw the device on his head.

"Her name was Dia... she'd hiding because she has a bounty on her head."

Revan rose a brow, sensing an opportunity to make some extra credits.

"Maybe we should collect then. Get some extra credits. We sure as Hell need it."

Carth and Kaera gave Revan disgusted looks which the Former Sith Lord merely frowned at.

"She's a criminal isn't she?"

Revan clarified, his brow furrowing in slight confusion before Carth sighed, relaxing as he explained Dia's situation. A dark look flashed across Revan's face as he realized what was happening and he thought over what he remembered of Taris' criminal infrastructure. What the rich Upper City Nobles and Sith didn't control would fall to either the Swoop gangs or the Exchange. Revan had no doubt the Exchange held the most sway of all the groups save the Sith and muttered a Mandalorian curse, which Carth narrowed his eyes at. He'd seen the younger human curse twice in Mando'a and was beginning to feel a bit uncomfortable with the ease at which he spoke in a language of the Republic's previous enemy. Sure a lot of soldiers knew Mando'a after the years of war against the Mandalorians but most chose to curse in their native languages. Normally Iridonian or Basic. Bottling his suspicions away for later reflection, Carth merely stared at Revan's expression as he heard why Dia had a bounty on her head and thought of a solution.

"We have a few choices them. Kill her and get the money which we may or may not need or we speak with Holdan, wasting valuable time. Or we ignore it all-together and feel like utter Bantha droppings. I say ignore her plight and move on to galactic problems, Carth?"

Revan glanced at Carth, more comfortable with his opinion than the Jedi's as Carth lacked the ability to try to read his mind and he likely had a better understanding of what was truly at stake. Carth frowned as he thought over Revan's blunt statement, trying to ignore the cold and calculating look of indifference on the other man's face.

"I say we try but keep on task. Bastila is a lot more important to the war effort but we can't turn our backs on this woman. From what I understand there's a Cantina in the lower city that handles all of the bounties planet-side through a local Hutt. Since we're likely stopping by there anyways I say we take a little detour."

Revan's expression remained blank as he turned his face to the Jedi's. The two locked eyes and Kaera shifted uncomfortably, unable to sense anything from the man and slightly troubled by his serious expression. While the business was serious the man's apathy was disturbing.  
"I agree with Carth, though you raise a good point, Tauryn."

Revan nodded to acknowledge the Jedi, letting a faint sense of relief and a bit of remorse through his barrier. The Jedi seemed to relax when she sensed the emotion from the slightly older human and returned Revan's nod. Carth, deciding the take charge moved off towards the lifts of the complex, glancing back to make sure Tauryn and Kaera were following him. Both younger humans fell into step behind the Commander and they entered the lift, all wincing slightly as the doors opened to the harsh glare of Taris' mid-day sun. The wreckage of their escape pod sat on a nearby walkway, still smoldering after three days but none paid it much mind, moving through the streets and heading towards the medical facility operated by the doctor Carth had inspect Kaera's wounds the previous day.  
"Apparently the Doctor, Zelka is taking in injured from the crash."

Carth stated, carefully coding his talk away from revealing their Republic identities as Sith sentries and patrols stood to the sides of the walkways, maintaining order. Revan listened with detached boredom as the Republic Commander described to the Jedi and himself of the Rakgoul plague that was running rampant in the Undercity of Taris, turning the infected into grotesque and rabid mutants that would attack anything not themselves on sight. Revan remembered the Rakgouls well and wondered why the facility he'd set up in the local Republic base hadn't made a cure. He'd known by looking at the disease that it was by no means incurable but he didn't think it would have taken nigh a decade to cure. The cure still non-existent though Carth commented on rumors of Sith hoarding the supplies. At that, Revan sighed mentally as he realized his Sith's invasion of Taris a year before would have likely halted all prospects of the Rakgoul Serum as they called it reaching those who needed it, especially if the local Sith Governor was corrupted, which was likely.

Moving past the medical facility, Revan came to an abrupt halt as he saw two men, one a dark-skinned human and the other an Aqualish threatening an old human man. The man was begging for help and Revan found he couldn't really bring himself to care as he moved on ignoring the man's pleas.

_"That is what you get for making deals with the Exchange. You're only adding to their influence."_

Carth moved forward, quickly grabbing Revan's arm and whispering to him as the Jedi moved to the scene, speaking to the two bounty hunters as she tried to be diplomatic about the situation.

"I know we want to keep a low profile but we can't just let this happen, Tauryn."

Revan glanced over his shoulder at Carth and then past him to see that Kaera's attempt at diplomacy was going to end violently. The bounty hunters seemed amused that a single human woman was trying to talk them out of their bounty and both brandished their weapons threateningly as they laughed in Kaera's face.

_"Little human girl thinks she can threaten us? We should teach her a lesson."_

The Aqualish spoke in its native language to its colleague and Revan sighed, motioning to Carth to cover Kaera as the two bounty hunters raised their weapons to teach Kaera a lesson. Moving with speed a normal human would find difficult, Revan moved behind the human bounty hunter, his shoulder knocking into the man and sending him stumbling back and over the edge of the walkway. The former Dark Lord's black leather cloak swayed in the air after his tackling and he turned to find the Aqualish had turned his blaster to him.

"Oh, clumsy me."

Revan muttered, dodging the first blaster bolt and grabbing the end of the Aqualish's blaster rifle. The rifle was pulled from the alien but the bounty hunter quickly pulled a sidearm, making a fatal error by forgetting about Kaera. Seeing that Revan was in trouble, Kaera pulled her curved Echani blade from her scabbard, in the same fluid motion cutting the bounty hunter's arm off as she stepped forward and to the left of the alien. The Aqualish screamed in pain, drawing the attention of a nearby group of Sith and Revan took advantage of the situation, knocking the Aqualish across his face with the stolen blaster rifle and into unconsciousness. A subtle kick to the base of the Aqualish's throat collapsed the air sacs vital to the alien's breathing and it shuddered as it tried to breath, dying rather quickly as its airways grew poisoned by the lack of proper breathing regulation.

"Hold there and explain yourselves."

A group of four silver-armored Sith approached, their blaster rifles trained on Revan, Carth and Kaera. Finding that some fast-talking would be needed, Revan fell back on his natural charisma, fixing a cruel smile on his face. Carth and Kaera nearly did a double take as Revan approached the Sith patrol without a hint of discomfort, confidence nearly tangible around him.

"Since your bloody blockade has us on this worthless planet's surface, we've had to seek... alternate means of employment. Its getting rather competitive."

Revan addressed the Sith that had spoken, gender indistinguishable by the silver and black armor but clear in her voice. The Sith's tenseness grew as she glanced at the dead Aqualish. In the confusion, the man the Bounty Hunters had been threatening slipped away unnoticed by the Sith who had more important problems to deal with.

"Your names, now."

The Sith demanded, her voice brokering no argument. Revan tilted his head, his eyes flashing as his cruel look shifted to something more curious.

"I'd rather know your name my dear."

Revan stated smoothly, causing Carth to chuckle until a second Sith turned his blaster rifle on him. Kaera merely watched the exchange with a raised brow, sensing the discomfort of the young Sith in charge of the group.

"Y- yes well, I- You're in no position to demand anything."

Revan gave a disappointed look, shamelessly eyeing the Sith and shrugging.  
"Your loss."

Revan muttered, backing away. Two of the Sith flanking their leader laughed at the obvious discomfort and one turned to her.

"He seems alright to me, Sarna."

One of the Sith said through a laugh. Revan relaxed slightly, sensing the suspicion turning to annoyance.

"We're off duty anyways. Come on, lets get out of these blasted uniforms and into a Cantina."

Another Sith seconded. Sarna kept her blaster trained on Revan as the former Dark Lord rose a brow, smirking at the young woman.  
"I just happened to be heading to the Cantina. I don't suppose I could convince you not to shoot me by buying you a drink?"

Revan asked, playing on the slight degree of lust he could sense from the woman. The Sith seemed to tremble slightly as her masked features scanned Revan slowly and she lowered her weapon.

"These local hunters are just scum anyways."

The leader, Sarna announced. As one the other Sith lowered their weapons and Carth let out a sigh of relief, holstering his half-drawn pistols while Kaera looked between amused and disturbed by how easily Revan was manipulating the Sith officer.  
"My name is Tauryn Bloodraven."

Revan stated, knowing the Sith would have the names of the _Endar Spire's_ crew and using a quick alias. Carth and Kaera quickly followed suit adding false last names to their own. The Sith leader threw her blaster rifle over her shoulder, holding it by its strap and pulled off her helmet, allowing the pressure seals to unlock before pulling it away and wiping her brow. Revan made a great show of taking in the young woman's features, finding it fairly easy to act as though he were interested.

"Sarna you say?"

The Sith, a young human woman in her mid twenties with blonde hair slightly darker than Kaera's smiled slightly, tilting her head.

"Junior Officer First Class, Sarna. You're obviously not a local..."

Sarna trailed off, a hopeful look on her face as she eyed Revan. In her eyes the man was very attractive, dark and dangerous enough to be exciting at the same time. Just the kind of man she liked. The three Sith flanking Sarna removed their helmets to reveal young human male faces and one moved near Kaera, eyeing the Jedi with a lustful gleam in his eye. Kaera gave the man a cold stare, moving closer to Carth and making a rather intimate gesture she had no right knowing as a Jedi as she whispered in the Republic soldier's ear. Carth resisted the urge to jump at the gesture, falling quickly into character by smiling down at Kaera.

"Tauryn, Kaera and I are gonna go back to that worthless Tarisian hole we're forced to live in. Maybe make it worthwhile. You going with this lot then?"

Revan turned his attention from Sarna to Carth, nearly bursting out laughing at the hidden discomfort of both the Telosian and the Jedi.

"I do owe the lady a drink and I'm not one of these bloody Tarisian savages, so I've my honor to consider. You two go on, I'll make sure to stay out late."

Winking at the soldier with a grin, Revan turned back to Sarna and the Sith, the superiority act gaining him their favor instead of their disdain as it would in the Republic. The Sith obviously hated Taris and Revan would use that to his complete advantage. The three Sith men grumbled to themselves over the loss of the Jedi's fairly pleasing presence and moved off, calling back to Sarna that they'd meet her at the party they were arranging.

"A party is it?"  
Revan asked, looking genuinely interested. Sarna turned her light brown eyes from her fellow Sith to the mysterious stranger before her. Taris, despite being a Rim world and occupied by some of the most violent bounty hunters and gangs in the sector was dull and Sarna was bored, searching for a little excitement in her life. The man before her seemed to promise that and Sarna put on a flattering smile, gesturing for Revan to follow her back to her apartment.

"Yes, we're throwing a bit of a party. None of us have shift tomorrow and its all so boring here. The locals are absolutely no fun."

Revan glanced back at the dead Aqualish, making sure Sarna saw his gesture and shrugged.

"They can be amusing at times but I know what you mean. No one here wants to just relax. Its bloody oppressive."

Sarna smiled genuinely, feeling she could enjoy the man's presence more and more as she unconsciously moved closer to his side. Revan took the helmet from Sarna's hands, smiling politely.

"I can help you with that my dear. Perhaps you can tell me more about this party."

Feeling a flush cross her cheeks, Sarna smiled, blinking at the man's politeness and licking her lips as she leaned in, whispering huskily into his ear.

"I don't suppose you'd rather come to my quarters? I see that lot all day and I don't think they'll miss us if we're a little late..."

Revan smirked, looking down at the shorter human. They were both adults and it wasn't as if he had his virtue to protect. She obviously was looking for a good time and didn't feel the need for any attachments and that, Revan decided would do just fine. Moving with the young Sith to her quarters, housed in a series of apartments in the Sith district of the Upper City, Revan found an outlet for his stress in the form of a lovely young woman as well as a solution to gaining access to the Under City. Sarna didn't seem to mind at all. In her own way, Sarna had issued a challenge to Revan and as a Mandalorian who was neither honor-bound my marriage or to a mate, Revan was hardly in a place to refuse such a challenge. Suffice it is to say, Revan proved to be more than adept at proving his warrior's prowess.

Lying in her bed beside Revan, Sarna traced a single finger around the Mythosaur Skull tattoo on Revan's bicep, smiling absently as she pressed her lips to his arm, kissing her way to his face. Revan smirked at the young woman, pulling her so she was beneath him and that he was straddling her.

"You're a Mandalorian? I- I've heard about their prowess in battle but I never thought-"

Revan silenced Sarna with a passionate kiss, relishing the feel of a warm, more than willing woman. It'd been nearly a year and it had a relaxing effect on the former Dark Lord's mind. Breaking the kiss, Revan pulled back, lying back and allowing Sarna to climb on top of him. The blonde Sith ran her hands along Revan's well-toned chest, smiling down at the man as she stood, moving to the fresher.

"To think there is still the party!"

Sarna laughed, leaving Revan as the former Dark Lord sat up, following the woman into the fresher.  
"I don't suppose you'd be willing to get me and my friends a contract with the Sith here?"

Revan asked, having had plenty of pillow talk with the Sith for the six hours that had passed since he'd lost track of Carth and Kaera. Sarna gave the young Mandalorian an amused smile, eyeing him as she pulled his arm, dragging Revan into the shower with her.

"I think you might be able to convince me."

Sarna whispered, kissing Revan again. Enjoying the challenge Sarna had issued as well as her sudden burst of energy, Revan gave as good as he got. In the end, both Sith and former Sith appearing at the party with a brighter look about them than had previously existed. Carth and Kaera, having been invited as well by Revan over their communicators were waiting, the Republic Commander giving Revan an incredulous and amused look while the Jedi merely looked disgusted and slightly curious. The evening alongside the Sith at the party progressed as expected with an ample supply of Tarisian ale and the Sith soon found themselves unconscious due to the potent alcohol while Revan, Carth, Kaera and Sarna were still fairly aware of their surroundings.

"Come on Tauryn. I don't have to work tomorrow and I can stay up all night."

Sarna whispered, glee and lust shining in her eyes. Hardly one to refuse such an offer, Revan nodded to Sarna, stopping by Carth's side to whisper something to the soldier before following Sarna out of the apartment and back to her quarters. Carth sat there for a moment, a glazed look on his face before he shook himself out of his stupor and glanced at Kaera's curious face.

"What is it?"  
Kaera asked, a hint of annoyance in her voice. She wasn't naive and she knew exactly what Tauryn Katarn was up to. Carth sighed, deciding he shouldn't bother judging Tauryn. Sarna was obviously not complaining and he couldn't say there was any violation going on. Sighing, Carth stood, leading Kaera from the party and speaking to her as they headed to their apartment to retire for the night.

"Tauryn is getting us some clearance papers as mercenaries for the Undercity."

Kaera looked incredulous as she all but stopped walking and turned to stare at Carth.

"He's talked her into that?"

Carth grimaced, muttering more to himself than the Jedi.

"I don't it had much to do with talking."

Coughing as he realized he'd said that out loud, Carth glanced at the Jedi beside him, seeing a flush on her cheeks as she shook her head with a shiver.

"That- that has to be the most vulgar, ignorant and blatant exploitation of power I have ever heard!"

The Jedi's voice was a harsh whisper and she turned to Carth, hoping the slightly older man wasn't as immature as Tauryn Katarn and able to control himself. Carth, in response chuckled lightly, placing his arm around the Jedi's shoulder and pulling her close as she stiffened, a look of utter shock on her face as the soldier answered.

"Much as I hate to admit it. Tauryn Katarn is a resourceful and intelligent man. I just hope he knows what he's doing..."

Disgusted in both of her companions, Kaera Nurr moved ahead of Carth, shoving the soldier away from her roughly as she stomped off towards their shared apartment as she spat out a single word in a disgusted tone that women often times did in similar situations.

"Men!"

By morning the next day, Revan had cleaned himself and secured the documents promised by Sarna to allow himself, Carth and Kaera access into the Tarisian Undercity as commissioned mercenaries for the Sith. Despite popular opinion, Revan Bloodraven was not a complete bastard and spoke at length with Sarna of the likelihood of their never meeting again. Sarna seemed disappointed but not crushed and merely enjoyed the man's presence, curious as to why he would caution her about being on Taris' occupation force and asking her to get a transfer to the orbital positions. Taking his advice into consideration, Sarna requested and received a transfer from Taris to the orbiting Sith fleet the next week, narrowly escaping Malak's plans for Taris thanks to a certain former Dark Lord of the Sith.

Walking through the cool morning air of Taris' dawn, Revan smiled to himself as he felt a weight lifted from his shoulders. He'd been uptight and needed to relax. Feeling a bit guilty at not being completely honest with the young Sith woman, Revan cautioned Sarna about remaining on Taris' surface and hoped for her sake she would reconsider her position with the Sith's ground forces. He'd known enough of the young woman to know she was merely a soldier, working for a sense of adventure and meaning that many young people sought and not for the nefarious purposes of the Dark Lord or Sith High Command. Sensing the woman's genuine kindness buried beneath her soldier's exterior, Revan sighed as he saw a bruised Ithorian being pelted by rocks from a group of local children.

_"I've done my bloody good deed for the day."_

Revan muttered, moving past until he saw another rock thrown at the Ithorian as the alien all but begged the children to stop. Seeing that the Ithorian was seriously injured, Revan sighed to himself turning on the children and fixing them with a cold glare he reserved for the lowest scum. The children, stopping in their taunts as a tall black and red-clad human moved between them and their source of amusement complained loudly, taunting Revan. One even tossed a rock which Revan grabbed and tossed back, causing the child to cry loudly.

"How does it feel?"

Revan asked, reaching down to pick up another rock while the children ran away, screaming insults back at him. Putting some force behind the throw, Revan tossed another rock, striking the back of one of the fleeing children and smirking viciously before he turned back to the injured Ithorian with a frown.

"You're in luck, mate. I just happen to know a doctor."

Revan muttered, remembering Carth's directions to Zelka's medical facility. The Ithorian gave the former Sith Lord a grateful nod, a look of pain on his face as he tried to stand. Revan helped the Ithorian to his feet, taking the alien to Zelka's care and paying the Doctor more than was needed before moving on to his shared apartment. In the silence of Taris' early morning thoughts plagued Revan's mind of his previous visits to Taris and how little had changed. Reaching the apartment, Revan moved into the door to find Carth and Kaera wide awake and waiting for him with crossed arms and expectant looks.

"Enjoy yourself?"

Carth asked with a knowing smirk while Kaera rolled her eyes, sighing as she cast Carth and Revan equally disgusted looks. Revan rose a brow, glancing between the two before returning Carth's smirk.

"Obviously not as much as the two of you!"

Revan shot back, enjoying the blank look of surprise on Carth's face and the look of utter shock on the Jedi's suddenly pale features.

"I- you- you are a vile man, Tauryn Katarn! How dare you assume that I, a Jedi Knight would be- would be so lacking in self control to indulge in such vulgar and depraved behavior!"  
Revan rose a brow, hearing Carth chuckling and having a hard time keeping himself from joining the Commander.

"Don't knock it till you've tried it, Master Jedi."

Kaera's pale face regained its healthy shade, darkening shortly after with embarrassment while both men laughed openly. After an adequate display of superiority and disgust, Kaera felt herself growing a bit amused, despite what she saw as wasted time. That thought of wasted time quickly vanished when she saw the former Sith Lord produce an official document from the Sith leadership of Taris, granting its holder and their companions access to all of Taris' levels.

AN: Rarely do I write deep intimacy and I kept most of the interaction in the PG-13 level. If anyone objects and feels I should change the rating of the story I would appreciate being informed and I assure you I will adjust the rating as needed. Hope you all enjoyed the change and don't worry, I don't write smut or anything like that I just felt the need to elaborate a bit on Revan's character. Plus it was a change. I will say stright out that I don't write MM or FF Slash, ever and I don't see myself writing it in the future.


	9. Chapter 8: Choosing a Side

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 8: Choosing a Side

Morning of the fourth day following the _Endar Spire's_ destruction fell on Taris and three humans moved silently amongst the early-morning activity of the cityworld, the natives leaving a wide path to the heavily-armed mercenaries while the Sith patrols stopped the humans from time to time, politely apologizing when a document was presented by the tallest of the three, a young human male standing just over two meters tall and dressed from head to toe in black leather and armor, a blood-red leather vest adding to his threatening presence while a pulled hood covered his sharp, commanding features from close scrutiny. The other companions, a slightly older human male wearing a combination of green and brown armor that looked almost designed as a type of jungle camouflage that sported two powerful blaster pistols on each side of his hips and a young human female who wore a light blue set of battle armor, lithe and sleek to allow her speed and protection while matching her golden, honey-blonde hair. Sharp blue eyes different from the dark brown of both her companions studied her surroundings with frightening awareness. With a sigh, the mouth of the young woman opened and she turned to her green and brown-clad companion while the other stood ahead of them, leading the way to the lifts to the Lower City.

"Well Carth, do you think there is any merit to this gang war the locals seem so concerned about?"

Kaera asked, having only heard the rumors from Carth. Revan knew well enough the dangers of underestimating an opponent and was listening with a small amount of interest while he kept his eyes focused on any potential threats. Carth sighed with an uncertain expression crossing his face as he kept pace with the Jedi and his fellow soldier. From what he'd heard; two of Taris' local gangs had recently declared a full-scale war on each other, throwing enough firepower around to take on a small Republic task force.

"The locals seem pretty disturbed. I wasn't able to learn much as I was tying to be discrete at the time... but I think we'd better be careful or we're going to have some new scars to explain to our superiors."

Revan rolled his eyes at the thought of himself having any superiors and found the lift he was looking for. The Sith, suspicious ordered to see their documents, politely letting them through after seeing the documents Revan had convinced Junior Officer First Class Sarna to put together for himself and his companions. The ride down took several minutes which were passed in complete silence as none of the _Endar Spire_ survivors put it past the Sith on Taris to plant listening devices in the lift. Sharing cautious glances as the lift slowed, the three humans moved into the lower city level slowly, the sounds of distant speeders and swoop bikes accompanied by random mechanical noises and the occasional blaster bolt and scream.

"Lovely place."  
Revan remarked dryly, his face twisted to a look of disgust as he recalled how little of Taris had changed since his first visit years before. It was sad really that the efforts he and the Jedi that had joined him to fight the Mandalorians had made just a small impact. He couldn't regret having tried and failed, only not having accomplished more. At that thought, a frown replaced Revan's look of disgust at his surroundings as he wondered where along the line he started to care. These people were dead as soon as Bastila was either died or got off Taris and that was his problem, not their impoverished and oppressed lives.

_"We've got to find Bastila and make sure we're with her when we leave Taris..."_

Revan thought to himself, not wanting to be anywhere near Taris when Malak decided he'd had enough waiting and glassed the place from orbit. Wondering if the oceans would remain unharmed or if they would boil away, Revan snapped out of his musings when he spotted a line of aliens and humans, divided into two groups of three and facing each other with expressions of hate as they exchanged insults.

"Looks like there is a gang war going on down here..."

Carth muttered bitterly but in a tone that had absolutely no surprise. It seemed that anything that could possibly go wrong in their search was going wrong. Distractions and Sith patrols aside, Carth instinctively moved for cover when the side wearing the colors of the Black Vulkars attacked the other group, calling themselves the Hidden Beks. The battle was short and one sided as the hulking forms of the Vulkars, obviously well-trained and powerful moved on the Beks and cut them to pieces with vibroblades. Kaera opened her mouth to say something but the fight was over before it had started and she closed her mouth, looking slightly pale at the sight of dismembered body parts and freshly spilt blood. Revan looked unaffected as he calmly pulled his pistol from its holster, switching the sonic blaster to a more deadly setting as it charged its standard blaster bolt pack.

_"Look, more strangers."_

One of the Bek's spoke in an alien language that only Revan seemed to understand as Carth and Kaera were standing still, regarding the Vulkars with looks of disgust. Revan quickly aimed his blaster as the Vulkars charged, firing two blaster bolts into the chest of one of the charging aliens, a Trandoshan while the other two moved on Carth and Kaera. Acting quickly, Carth pulled both of his blasters, flicking the selective fire to blaster bolts and sending five point-blank shots into the Vulkar charging him. Kaera sidestepped the vibrosword of the Vulkar charging her, bringing her blaster rifle up and hitting the large alien in the head. The Trandoshan Vulkar, which happened to be the same species as its two dead companions, staggered back and was hit from behind by a well-placed shot from Revan. The alien dropped forward, a smoking hole in the back of its skull while Revan and Carth moved forward, both using the narrow corridor leading into an adjacent junction as cover. With the gang war going on, no civilians were wandering the streets and Carth and Revan moved back, cautiously holstering their weapons as they inspected their kills and the unfortunate Beks.

"Guess we know the gang colors then. We'd better be cautious from here on."

Revan muttered, absently kicking a Vulkar corpse. Carth nodded his agreement while Kaera scowled at her blaster rifle. She hadn't fired a single shot and thus far she'd only used the supposedly sophisticated weapon as a cudgel.

"So uncivilized."

The Jedi muttered, shaking her head at her weapon as she unfolded the stock, bringing it to the ready as she had seen the Sith the previous day do when they were stopped. Recalling how they'd received clearance to the Lower City, Kaera scowled at Revan, moving to cover the middle while the former Sith Lord re-drew his weapon and took point. Carth kept one of his pistols at the ready, his other hand lingering for his second while he kept a cautious watch to the rear. None of the gang members had anything of interest or value on their persons and the three humans moved onward, finding a long winding corridor that led to a series of what likely passed as stores and apartments. An unpleasant smell, a mixture of old water and decaying metal hung heavily in the air, the ancient ventilation systems of Taris providing much needed fresh air from the surface but unable to mask to stale scent of decay that had settled into the Lower City. Revan found it oddly fitting as it represented the decay of the society around him, the shining spires of the Upper City of Taris hiding the rotting core beneath the surface.

_"Beauty is only skin-deep."_

Revan mused, curling his lip at a guard wearing Hidden Bek colors and standing beside an otherwise inconspicuous set of doors. The guard, a dark-skinned woman with extremely short, curly hair glared at the three humans, saying nothing but keeping her hand on a vibroblade at her side in silent warning. None of the Republic party bothered to spare the woman a second glance, the Jedi sensing only aggressive defense and Revan knowing he could kill her where she stood if she even tried to kill him. Carth was watching the rear so he kept the woman in his peripherals Spotting bright lights and a guard that looked to actually be doing his job and not simply glaring at people, Revan moved to the relatively short Rodian, raising a brow at the bright lights flickering behind him and the closed blast door.

"I take it this is what passes for fun down here?"  
Revan asked, holstering his weapon as the Rodian had trained a weapon on him. Seeing the human put away his weapon the Rodian lowered his own pistol, nodding to Revan as he glanced at the two humans flanking the third.

_"This is the Cantina. If you don't cause trouble you don't get blasted. If you cause trouble I blast you."_

The Rodian spoke in its native language and Revan nodded to the bouncer, moving past the Rodian and into the Cantina with Carth and Kaera holstering their weapons and following. As the doors closed behind the three another set of blast doors cycled, almost like an airlock and Revan spotted another guard on the other side, carefully watching a monitor of the outside of the cantina they had just passed through. Glancing back at Carth with a raised brow, Revan moved into the Cantina, his hand dropping to his weapon as he spotted Black Vulkar colors. Narrowing his eyes at the three Vulkars, Revan followed their gazes to a man he hadn't seen for over a year and a half. Calo Nord.

"Bugger."

Revan muttered, glad his hood was up. Moving quickly to the side of the hallway, Revan watched with a bit of amusement as Calo was approached by the three Black Vulkars and showed absolutely no interest in them. The Vulkars threw out threats which Calo answered by simply counting down from three slowly. The Vulkars, clueless to the danger they were in continued to taunt Calo until the short human reached zero and tossed a flash grenade from his belt. The grenade exploded, filling the dimly lit Cantina with a bright flash and the only sound as the band stopped and everyone grew silent was three precise shots. Holstering his heavy Mandalorian blasters, Calo Nord turned, his head and features hidden beneath spacer goggles and a white scarf turban more suited to a desert inhabitant than someone occupying Taris' Lower City and headed to the exit. Three smoking corpses of Black Vulkars lay on the ground, a single blaster burn in each Vulkar's heart. Revan kept his face hidden though Carth and Kaera made no attempts to move out of Calo's way, both looking rather surprised by the short human's display. Calo came to a halt in front of Carth, looking up at the taller human with a curious expression that was barely discernable before he glanced towards Revan.

_"Bugger."_

Revan muttered to himself, knowing the shorter man recognized him. Calo tilted his head to the side, studying Revan's features silently before moving out of the Cantina and on to better things. Outside of the Cantina, Calo Nord frowned, glancing over his shoulder with a shake of his head. There was absolutely no way that man in there was who he thought he was.

_"I recognized Onasi but that other man... it couldn't possibly be Revan."_

Deciding he'd had too much Tarisian Ale, Calo decided to cut Carth Onasi a break and made his way silently to Davik Kang's base. Davik would likely have he and Canderous Ordo working double-time to get to the Republic escape pods in the Undercity and if he wanted to get paid he'd have to beat the former Mandalorian General to them. With a smirk, Calo wondered if Davik would be foolish enough to miss a payment on himself in favor of Canderous. True Canderous Ordo was an imposing presence, tall and brutal and everything Calo wasn't but Calo's bosses that didn't pay ended up dead and that, Davik Kang knew while Canderous' previous bosses aside from the Mandalorian ones were still alive.

Inside the Cantina, Revan pulled back his hood and pulled off his headset with a scowl, moving to a table and ordering a stiff drink from the waitress as he pocketed the headset and pulled out fifteen credits. Leaving the credits on the table, Revan leaned back, closing his eyes and rubbing his temples while Carth and Kaera stared at him with confused expressions. Moving to the table to join him, Carth and Kaera watched the man silently before he finished rubbing his temples and looked up at them.

"That was Calo Nord, if you didn't notice and he was eyeing us all pretty well there."

Carth's confused look turned to one of resignation as he waved a waitress down and ordered a stiff drink as well. Kaera passed, scowling at the two but no less concerned. Calo Nord was one of the most dangerous and successful bounty hunters in the galaxy and his reputation was earned. If the Sith got smart and put bounties on their heads they would be in a very tight spot.

"You catch the name of this hole calling itself a Cantina?"  
Revan asked as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. The former Sith Lord's tone was one of annoyance as he wondered idly why the galaxy seemed to put every possible obstacle in his way. Carth glanced at the door, seeing the name of the Cantina operating the bounties on Taris and blew out a calming breath as he rubbed his unkempt beard. Kaera remembering her promise to Dia stood, drawing Revan's weary gaze. He may have been a powerful Force-sensitive but keeping his powers suppressed and the mindless and directionless search for Bastila was getting under his skin. He needed a good long spar, a good run, anything to get his mind straightened out with what he was doing and more alarming, who he was. Revan knew he wasn't the same as he had been before his capture and he wanted to know how much of that was his own will or if it was all some elaborate plot by the Jedi to force him to lead them to the Sith's secrets. He wouldn't put it past the Jedi Council if they'd sanctioned raping his mind and exploiting his body to their needs.

_"Well that puts it into perspective."_

Finding himself wanting to murder Holdan as well as the Jedi Council in various painful ways he knew intimately, Revan decided to let Carth and Kaera handle it, keeping a low profile was more important than violence therapy. Catching Carth's calculating stare, Revan frowned at the other man, absently brushing his beard.

"What? Do I have something on my face?"

Carth's expression blanked before he smiled, shaking his head with a chuckle.

"You looked a little annoyed about something, just curious."

Raising a brow, Revan glanced at Kaera as she watched the two warily, standing to the side of the table and frowning before she moved off to take care of Dia's bounty. The drinks came and Revan and Carth both took generous swigs, setting their glasses down and both allowing the alcohol to burn down their throats, the sensation easing their tenseness. Leaning back, Revan absently twisted his glass in circles, the scrape of the glass on the metal of the table creating a subtle grinding noise while Carth frowned at his companion. He was starting to like the younger human but he had a few questions burning in his mind. One in particular.

"When Kaera first woke up, you cursed at her for hitting your injury. I'm curious as to why it was in Mando'a."

Revan took another drink, noting that only a third of his beverage remained. The former Sith Lord merely stared at Carth, blinking at the Commander with a blank look.

"You seem curious about a lot of things."

Revan answered in a flat tone as he drank the last of his liquor. Licking his lips and clearing his throat, Revan set the glass down, declining another when the waitress collected the glass. Carth's curious look turned hostile and Revan sighed, searching his false memories for an acceptable answer.  
"I was born on Deralia, a Mandalorian-held world. I was raised until the age of ten to be a Mandalorian until the outpost was attacked. I was on a ship in orbit when it happened and it was heavily damaged. The escape pods were lost early in the battle and the warriors had all been killed by boarders. With most of the hull breached from the boarders a few other children and myself had to get the ship back together. It didn't work and we ended up getting pulled into the planet below before we could get the stabilizers..."

Revan frowned at the memory, wondering why it bothered him. He'd been a child at the time, three years from adulthood in the Clans and his only care at the time had been his Clan and his honor. Losing his Clan had been disappointing but he'd always kept his honor by living, carrying on the Bloodraven's title in his own way.

"I was picked up by a Jedi Knight... taken to the Republic where I was sent through some social program that frankly was pathetic. When I was old enough I joined the fleet as a scout before they conscripted me to the navy and knocked me to an Ensign. Wasn't really much debate in my mind who to fight for after Cathar, Sir."

Carth watched Revan's face carefully as he spoke, seeing real emotions playing over the younger man's features as he spoke. When he mentioned Cathar, Revan's eyes had grown cold and look of disgust had crossed his features when he had finished speaking. Carth studied Revan for a few more silent moments before nodding slowly, believing his companion and knowing the conversation was over.

"I'd better go check on Kaera."

Carth muttered, standing and moving towards the passage Kaera had gone through. The Republic Commander paused at Revan's side, glancing down at his companion for a silent moment before he moved on, spotting Kaera glaring at a scarred human who was eyeing her in a fairly obvious manner as to what he was asking for.

"So let me get this straight. You want me to pay you for trying to force yourself on another woman?"

Kaera's glare grew colder as the man smirked at her, glancing behind her to catch a sight of a dancing Twi'lek girl. Shuddering in absolute disgust at the vile man before her, Kaera waved her hand subtly.

"You want to call off your bounty on Dia."

Holdan's eyes glazed as the sleazy human's face slackened, losing all expression as he repeated in a mindless tone.

"I want to call off the bounty on Dia."

Spotting Carth, Kaera smirked slightly.

"You want to go home and consider chemical castration."

Holdan repeated the Jedi's words with slightly changes as to who was doing what and Kaera removed her hold on the man's mind, giving the man a disgusted look as he shook his head and looked around in a daze.

"I think I'm going to talk to Zax the Hutt... If you wanna see what a real man can do..."

Holdan gave the Jedi a leer, making it a point to eye her before he moved past her and Carth. Carth watched the man go with a disgusted look, half a mind to blast the man where he stood before he turned to Kaera, who was still shuddering at the disgusting human.

"I swear I may fall to the bloody Darkside if I run into many more like him."

Kaera joked weakly, too disturbed by the corruption she'd seen so far on Taris to put her mind to the joke. Carth moved to her side, resting a hand on her shoulder and Kaera tensed, giving the Commander a confused look.

"Tauryn or I can handle the next one if you want."

Recalling the dark look that had crossed Revan's face when he'd been informed of why Dia had a bounty on her head, Kaera highly doubted Tauryn would be so subtle in his solution to the problem. From what she'd seen he was a fairly intelligent individual but prone to reckless and violent outbursts when confronted with dangerous or sensitive situations.

_"That's not entirely true..."_

Kaera thought to herself, recalling how cold and calculating the man could be one moment, spur of the moment the next and how much ingenuity he showed when faced with a situation requiring a quick decision. It was an equation in the Jedi's mind that didn't add up unless she added one simple thing; the Force. There was no doubt in Kaera's mind that Tauryn Katarn was Force-sensitive and the Jedi was slightly curious as to whether the man had been given any training or if he was missed as a child and had grown up outside of the Jedi Order and unknowing of the gift he had been given. Unable to imagine life without the Force, Kaera pitied the man before she realized Carth was speaking to her.

"Beg your pardon? Sorry my mind was elsewhere."

Carth frowned at the Jedi, his brow furrowing before he shrugged it off and repeated himself. He'd always thought Jedi had superb listening abilities but apparently their only shared trait was a sense of superiority. Sighing, Carth gave the young woman a concerned look, studying her much like he had Revan minutes before. She had been in a coma for a couple days and was injured on top of that. No one could just bounce back from that.

"I was wondering how you're feeling."

Carth muttered, concern in his voice. The Jedi raised a brow at Carth, a little surprised at the gesture but seeing no point in not answering.

"Healthy, a bit taxed by our situation but I am completely fine, Commander."

A formal tone tipped Carth off to something being wrong but not knowing the young woman very well, the soldier merely nodded, looking over his shoulder and cursing.

"Tauryn's gone. Can you sense him anywhere?"  
Carth asked in a harsh whisper, moving back into the main area of the Cantina. Kaera quickly reached into the Force, a sense of panic rising within her when she could sense nothing. Doing a quick visual scan of the area, Kaera glanced down at her wrist-communicator, rolling her eyes.

_"Of course the blasted communicator would have been a rational first choice."_

Annoyed at herself for not thinking clearly, Kaera tapped the communicator and waited. Carth glanced down at his vibrating communicator, his expression turning to one of annoyance as he remembered the rotating frequencies.  
"Tauryn, you there?"  
Carth asked, looking around for the black-clad form of his subordinate. Silence answered the comm and Carth was about to move his search outside of the Cantina when Tauryn emerged from the fresher, looking annoyed. Kaera joined Carth, looking at Tauryn with a raised brow as she expected an answer.

"Can a man use the bloody Fresher without being hunted down?"  
Revan asked, his voice clipped and clearly annoyed. Carth shook his head with a weary sigh while Kaera smiled slightly, amused at the display. Revan caught the amused look and pointed his finger at the Jedi.

"Don't start. I'm going to go ask some of the locals about the escape pods, you two do whatever you want."

Moving past the two, Revan moved right for the bar in the center of the room, ordering another stiff drink and slamming the drink back before paying the bartender and stalking off into a dark corner with what looked like a promising lead. Carth and Kaera glanced at each other, sharing a grin before they moved off to the side rooms of the Cantina.

"I don't understand why he's so uptight. I mean we are in a rather difficult situation but he really does have a lot of stress in his aura..."

Kaera was concerned slightly about what she could sense from her companions. Carth was radiating weariness and anger that was so intertwined in his aura she could scarcely get any other emotions from him. Bitterness seemed a close third for Carth and Kaera spared her companion a glance, wondering why the man felt as he did. Not used to working alongside non-Jedi, Kaera had hidden her confusion and awkwardness by sending her emotions subtly into the Force. Fearing attracting too much attention, Kaera held on to a few emotions and her equilibrium was fairly out of sync when she was all but bombarded by her companion's emotions. Tauryn seemed to have none if she were completely honest, unless he was acting on something. It seemed almost like the man only felt anything when interacting and the Jedi wondered how he could be so blank in her reading through the Force. From time to time she could sense a bit of suppressed emotion and a hint of something else but hardly anything she could name beyond stress. Sighing, Kaera wondered if she were so out of balance because of intercepting her companion's emotions or simply because of her own frayed nerves.

"So where are you from?"

Carth asked, not seeing any trustworthy individuals to question regarding their difficult situation. Kaera, having expected an interrogation from Carth from her observations of his and Tauryn's behavior stared at the soldier with a neutral expression. Where she was from wasn't really important so much as finding Bastila and getting off of Taris and the Jedi wondered if the soldier was genuinely interested or paranoid beyond reason. After all she was a Jedi.

"Coruscant as far as I could remember. I have a family but I've never known them... or where they're from."

The Jedi's voice was flat and Carth stopped his silent search of the Cantina to stare back at the young woman.

"You've never met your parents?"

The Jedi smiled wryly, raising a brow as she regarded Carth with a pitying expression.

"Of course I've met my parents, its just beyond my memory. Do you remember being an infant?"

Carth wasn't sure if the Jedi was baiting him or serious and he frowned at the young woman. He'd had a couple of decades with his own parents before they were killed in a speeder crash. He'd joined the Telosian Security Force and the Republic Navy soon after and aside from a brief interlude to his military career where he met and married his late wife, Morgana, Carth had nothing to go back to when the guns stopped. In fact he didn't expect to make it through the war without his wife or his son or even the small mercy of his homeworld to return to. A sense of bitterness and anger welled in the Republic Commander and he turned from Kaera's mocking expression to scan the bar. Turning his mind from unpleasant memories, Carth focused on the mission, the only thing that kept him going after the Sith attack on Telos.

"Carth..."

Kaera's voice was softer than its normal tone and the Republic soldier spared the young woman an annoyed look.

"What?"

The Commander spat, more harshly than he wanted to. Sensing something was bothering the Republic soldier, Kaera moved closer to the Commander, laying a hand gently on his shoulder. Hearing her Master's voice in the back of her mind, scolding her for such an emotional display, Kaera pushed her misgivings aside, feeling she needed to speak with Carth, help him. It had little to do with the Force's will and Kaera knew she had always been too sympathetic, too focused on the emotional and not the rational as her Master and instructors had stated were vital to a Jedi. Emotions were to be purged from the mind to leave only the set standards of justice to follow and while her duty was to the Jedi, Kaera's heart rebelled silently.

"I'm sorry if I- if I mocked you, it was in jest, Carth."

Carth's annoyed expression turned to a weary one he wore most of the time and the Telosian sighed, rubbing his beard absently in a calming gesture that rarely worked anymore. Having gone through the memories with Tauryn, Carth took a moment, spotting a nearby empty table and taking a seat. Kaera followed and the Republic soldier glanced at the Jedi's open and sincere expression.

"Its not you, Kaera... I- I just can't get the images out of my mind. I- I used to have a wife and a son on Telos... until the Sith came..."

Carth trailed off, closing his eyes and covering them with his left hand while he tried to control himself. The drink he had earlier was dulling his senses slightly and while it didn't inebriate him, it had an undesirable effect on his mind and self-control. Kaera remained silent, laying a hand gently on Carth's right and wondering what she had gotten herself into. She wasn't certain if Tauryn knew and she doubted she would find out as the younger man of the two, while charismatic was anything but talkative about himself. From what she'd seen he only answered if cornered and even then he would be short and to the point.

"There- there's more but I can't talk about it right now. I- we've gotta focus on finding Bastila."  
Carth collected himself fairly quickly, wiping a hand across his eyes and standing. Kaera silently stood as well, wanting to say something reassuring but deciding to follow the soldier's lead.

"Yes, we'd better go see if Tauryn is still alive... or sober at least."

Carth's solemn expression turned to a mixture of bitterness and amusement as he shook his head and gave a weak smile.

"Yea, I guess you're right."

Wishing she could do more for the man, Kaera made a mental note to speak with him alone at a later time, when they were not so exposed and she moved to Carth's side, moving back into the Cantina's main room. Not seeing Revan anywhere, the two humans glanced at one another with matching looks of annoyance. Tauryn Katarn could not stay put it seemed. His track record with reckless, almost thoughtless spur of the moment decisions that usually resulted in smoking corpses, if the bounty hunters could be a testament to that did not comfort the two humans.

Tauryn Katarn, referred to as Revan by old friends sat in a dark corner of the Cantina, staring at three Black Vulkars threatening a young Twi'lek girl. Sipping on his drink the former Sith Lord watched the exchange curiously as the Vulkars bullied their way to where the Twi'lek was standing, obviously looking for trouble. Eyeing the Twi'lek's appearance, Revan put her in her early teens, not much older than the Cathar Juhani he had rescued on the very same world. A bitter, resentful smile crossed Revan's face as he wondered if it was fate that he would be placed in such a position again to save some young teenaged alien girl in the Tarisian Lower City. When the Rodian leading the Vulkar crew began threatening the girl, Revan tensed and prepared to make his presence known to them. While it wasn't his fight he'd always had a problem seeing men push women around. It was never much of a problem with Mandalorian or Jedi women as they usually sliced off multiple body parts moments later but with a young blue-skinned Twi'lek girl, you never could be too careful. The Twi'lek, her young face pulling into a disgusted look as the Rodian invaded her personal space, talking down to her waved her hand back and forth in front of her face, cringing in mock-disgust.

"Back off, Bug-eye. Your breath smells like Bantha Poodoo!"

Darth Revan; the violent, unrepentant and merciless Sith Lord buried beneath the facade of Tauryn Katarn wore a surprised expression on his face as he felt something flicker in his chest, shaking his shoulders and finally pushing out of his mouth. A genuine laugh, not the false amusement he threw out to cover his identity and ease Carth and Kaera's minds came from his mouth, cruel and amused. It was the laugh of a Sith Lord who found amusement only in the darkest of things. Ironic that a fourteen year old Twi'lek street urchin could inspire such an impulse. Twi'lek and Rodian, along with the other two Vulkars flanking turned to the dark-clad man beside them. The Twi'lek with a curious expression that was tinged with annoyance at having someone eavesdrop on her while the Vulkars wore calculating expressions as they sized Revan up. The mental image of the Rodian Vulkar shoveling piles of Bantha droppings into his face had briefly flashed across Revan's mind and he'd made the connection with the unpleasant smell he attributed to being so close to Taris' Undercity. He was honestly amused at the thought that maybe the Rodian was living off the trash in the Undercity. It certainly would explain the smell.

_"You think that's funny? Well there's three of us and only one of you!"_

The Rodian spat in its native language at Revan. the Twi'lek, Mission Vao glared at the Rodian, getting angry at being so easily brushed off and that the man was being bullied against stepped between Revan and the Rodian. The Twi'lek wore a fierce look of annoyance at the existence of the Vulkar before her and she glanced over her shoulder briefly at Revan, seeing the man was too busy laughing a really disturbing laugh, but laughing none the less to realize he was pissing off the wrong people.  
"I think you forgot about me chubba Face!"

Mission spat, silently cursing herself for stepping between the distraction and the threat. Her instincts told her to run but she refused to back down from a Vulkar. Besides, Big Z had her back and she couldn't just let the Vulkars kill someone for laughing, the guy looked new to the Lower City, a stranger and he'd be dead if she didn't help out. The Rodian turned his glower from Revan to Mission, his hand traveling to a blaster at his side.

_"What is little girl going to do about it?"_

The Rodian turned back his attention to the original source of amusement for himself and his companions to threaten Mission and Revan stood, towering over the much shorter Twi'lek as his amused features shifted into a cold, emotionless glare. Despite still having superior numbers, the Rodian backed up a step, surprised at the man's height. He'd looked much shorter when he was sitting down and the look in the man's eyes he'd seen in Canderous Ordo's eyes from time to time. Taking in the man's powerful built the Rodian realized with dread that he'd angered a Mandalorian and he swallowed.

"Hey, don't sweat it. Hey Big Z! I got some bugs that need to be stomped on!"

Mission said the first part off-handedly to Revan before turning to shout towards a Wookiee's massive form that sat adjacent to Revan's table. Revan turned his 'You're going to die' look from the Rodian to stare at the back of Mission Vao's head. The Twi'lek's headtails were relaxed, her Lekku barely twitching and Revan wondered briefly who Big Z was. The silent question was answered when a growl in Shyriiwook answered the Twi'lek's Basic.

_"Can it wait, Mission? I'm hungry!"_

The Twi'lek looked annoyed as she looked over to her friend with a stern glare. Revan's features turned to surprise and he sensed Carth and Kaera had spotted him. The Jedi and Republic Commander joined Revan, seeing that the former Dark Lord had obviously started some trouble and they wore matching looks of annoyance.

"There a problem here, Tauryn?"  
Carth spat, glaring at Revan while saying the question loud enough for the Vulkars to hear. The Commander wanted to avoid a conflict if necessary and he didn't quite have all the facts straight as to why Tauryn was starting a bar fight. Revan; still staring at the Wookiee that had answered Mission, ignored Carth and turned his attention back to the Vulkars, suddenly finding the alarmed expressions in front of him, contrasting their previous looks of certainty; amusing. Restraining his urge to laugh again, Revan listened to Mission chastise the Wookiee Zalbaar, the barest hint of urgency in her tone hidden underneath a generous amount of annoyance.

"Well you can eat anytime! Get your lazy behind over here!"

Looking pissed off the Wookiee stood to its full height of just under seven feet and stalked over to the three Black Vulkars. Seeing that they were outnumbered and outclassed, the Rodian Vulkar made a last ditch attempt to spare his gang's image.

_"Our fight not with Wookiee, our fight with you, little girl."_

Being left out of the threat, Revan rolled his eyes at the Vulkar's words. How easily they would be cowering at his feet if only he still wore his mask. Absently wondering what had happened to his mask, Revan swiftly unsheathed his sword, placing the deadly tip against the Rodian's chest, directly over its heart in a split second. The Rodian turned from glowering down at Mission to staring at Revan with a slightly fearful look as he pulled his hand away from his blaster, raising it in the air to show he wasn't going to draw.

"I seem to recall you having a problem with me."

Revan stated calmly, his face expressionless as he stared into the Rodian's eyes. Unnerved, the Rodian took a step back, Revan advancing with him with fluid ease as he kept the blade trained of the alien's heart. Noticing Carth and Kaera, the Rodian turned its attention back to Mission, making a final threat that promised he would be looking for her when she was alone.

_"Little girl is lucky she has big friends."_

Knowing a bunch of random killings would start a scene with the bar's security since he wasn't flaunting his name like Calo was, Revan lowered his blade, sheathing it as the Vulkars passed him one last glare before leaving.

"Mind telling me just who the Hell you pissed off now?"

Carth asked, an edge to his voice Revan hadn't heard before. Carth was pissed. The former Dark Lord glanced at the Republic Commander and then to Kaera who he saw was paying more attention to Mission and Zalbaar, fixing both the Twi'lek and Wookiee with a calculating and curious stare that Jedi were so well at making.

"Hey, who asked you!"

Mission spat, taking Revan's side immediately. Carth, seeming to notice the small blue Twi'lek frowned as he looked down at the angry glare she was sending him. He knew they should step in if things got too bad but the girl had a Wookiee for a bodyguard for crying out loud.

"Its fine."

Revan stated to Mission, turning to face Carth.

"Well she..."

Revan trailed off, casting a curious glance at Mission. The Twi'lek smiled, throwing her name into the conversation while Revan turned back to face Carth.

"Made a joke I found funny. I laughed and apparently the Black Vulkars... you remember the ones that started attacking us as soon as we got down here? Yea, them. Apparently they decided to take offense to my amusement and I couldn't very well ask them to put their blasters away now could I? No you say? That's what I thought too."

Revan had spoken as if speaking to a small child, not giving Carth any opportunity to respond between statements and Carth's face turned red as the Commander glowered at his companion, a bit put off by his attitude. Kaera found it a bit juvenile but smiled slightly at the younger man's humor. She could appreciate a bit of humor to ease the tension that Carth seemed to create. Mission giggled while Zalbaar grumbled in his native tongue and moved back to his meal.

"Hey I don't think I recognize any of you and I know just about everyone in the Lower City. The name's Mission Vao! And that big guy over there stuffing his face? That's Big Z. Zalbaar if you wanna be technical. Those Vulkars are getting to be a real problem down here... attacking people at random, it doesn't matter if they're Beks or not."

Revan turned back to Mission, smiling politely. He liked that the girl didn't back down and he knew they were going to need a lead on what happened to Bastila. Killing two gizak with one stone, Revan decided Mission would be an excellent source of information. He could already tell the girl was extremely bright and genuinely kind. While he was sneering at the kindness inside, Revan's expression was a simple, kind smile. He knew enough to know kindness was rarely returned and he would be nice to the girl, but only because she amused him.


	10. Chapter 9: Differing Opinions

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 9: Differing Opinions

Mission Vao had been more than helpful in answering Revan's questions about Taris. The Twi'lek teen had more information on Taris than he really wanted to know and her excitement at telling it to him had grated on his nerves. Especially with her bright, slightly high-pitched voice. She was a picture of youthful energy and innocence and it felt wrong for Revan to be enjoying the girl's company, so he forced himself to not enjoy it, seeking flaws in her demeanor. Disgusted with how petty he was forcing himself to be, Revan wondered what real harm there could be in liking the girl before he recalled the ever present doom of Malak's fleet of ships. Malak would destroy Taris in the near future and the only ones that would be able to get off world would be the ones in Bastila's ship. That is, assuming the ones in Bastila's ship got past the orbital weapons platforms, the Sith fighter patrols and of course a few dozen Sith Interdictor class cruisers. Long story short, Mission Vao and her Wookiee friend were going to die like everyone else on Taris and there was little to nothing Revan could do about it since if they didn't find Bastila; Carth, Kaera and himself would likely be joining the doomed world's population.

"I have a concern I'd like to note."

Revan stated to Carth and Kaera. Their transit to the Lower City as well as their tenure in the Cantina had taken up most of the day and according to Carth's wrist chrono it was going to be dark by the time they got back to their Upper City apartment. Carth and Kaera both turned to Revan, both wanting to follow the leads Mission Vao was able to give them about the crashed escape pods. They'd lost a couple of days worth of searching but they were having some pretty good luck, aside from a few unavoidable fights and Revan was starting to get paranoid. Carth was already paranoid and Kaera was concerned over a strange stirring in the Force she couldn't place but otherwise focused on the task at hand.

"We're wasting time with all these bleeding heart charity missions. We can't get too involved with the locals here or we risk losing sight of the big picture. What matters is finding Bastila and then getting off world. I'll admit we should help when we can but there is little we can do to impact the suffering on this world... it might be- No it is best that we ignore what can be ignored."

Carth's jaw clenched slightly at that while Kaera looked away from Revan's steady and serious gaze. The man was basically telling them to turn a blind eye to the pain and suffering around them and while they knew he was absolutely right about where their focus should lay, it wasn't easy to accept. Carth was of course the first to voice his dissent.

"Oh? Like you stepped in with Mission back in that cantina? Do you have any idea what could have happened if we weren't there and she didn't have a Wookiee backing her up!?"  
Carth was still pretty annoyed with his fellow soldier and the reality of their situation was beginning to weight heavily on the man, diverting his thoughts from anger directed at a betrayal of a friend and mentor to anger at being talked down to by a man a decade his junior. He hadn't appreciated the condescending way Tauryn Katarn had addressed him in the cantina but least of all he did not like the hypocrisy of the man's statement. Tauryn hadn't made many efforts to follow his own advice, seeking to interfere with the local's conflicts and pretty much broadcasting their presence. He may as well have been waving an active lightsaber around in front of the Sith and yelling at them 'I'm the one you're looking for!' Revan's face took on a slightly troubled, uncertain look as he reviewed his actions and saw why Carth would be so angry. It amused him, the man's annoyance and took his mind away from how he'd felt empathy with the man, felt perhaps a bit of sympathy for the man's plight but that was something Revan could ignore. He was a master of ignoring his feelings and doing what needed to be done or saying what needed to be said. When it suited him of course. Making those statements as annoying as possible only added to the fun.

"I just had a feeling she needed our help and that she could be useful... answer some questions. Bloody Hell Carth she was standing right next to me and those Vulkars were cowards. They wouldn't have done anything to me."

Kaera was studying Revan closely, her eyes narrowed thoughtfully as she read into his words. If he'd been following his feelings and he was Force-sensitive, it was the will of the Force that he help the Twi'lek and as a servant to the Force, Kaera wasn't about to doubt its will, though she hadn't sensed anything at the time.

"Well you're making enemies as fast as you can, Tauryn. And on what? A _feeling_.!? You need to get your head straightened, soldier. We can't go chasing feelings if we're going to get anything done and I'll be damned if I'm going to listen to you preach something and do the exact opposite when you feel like it. Make a damn choice, soldier or get behind someone who can!"  
There was anger but also logic in Carth's words, the only thing that really stopped Revan from killing him on the spot. He wasn't one to be talked down to, he was the one that did that and if someone was going to pull rank on him, they had damn well better make certain they could kill him before trying it. Anger was coiling in the former Dark Lord's shoulders and he fixed Carth with a narrowed gaze, scenarios of Carth's death playing through his mind and how it would effect the outcome of his own goals. Kaera seemed to notice the dangerous and calculating look the younger man was sending Carth, seeing it for what it was as Revan was too angry to disguise it. He was looking at an injured, bleeding limb and thinking of the consequences of severing it.

"Carth, this isn't helping."  
Kaera stated, seeing that Tauryn was about to strike a superior officer. Obviously the man didn't like being called on his mistakes and she needed to do something fast to clear the testosterone and male posturing. Rolling her eyes mentally at that, Kaera wondered if the two just needed to knock some sense into one another. They were both smart, if a bit immature for their respective ages... well really immature for their ages but they both raised good points. The greater good was what mattered and while what Carth suggested had been truthful as well, he was missing part of the equation. The Force.

"Oh I see, two against one now? Well I'm not just gonna sit back and be ignored while you waste our time."  
Kaera scowled slightly at Carth, annoyed at his quick and confrontational statement. Briefly wondering if a Force-suggestion would work on the two, Kaera decided against it. Tauryn seemed to be calming down some, his calculating gaze turning away from Carth to their surroundings.

"You're right, Carth. If we're going to be making enemies of the Vulkars... what say we make friends of the Beks? Mission spoke up for them and she seemed to be a well-informed source. For your information my _feelings_ tend to be right. I have a feeling the Beks would be a nice source of information on those downed pods and they don't sound as though they have any love of the Sith. Maybe we'll get lucky."

Carth, pulling himself back from his anger sighed, his shoulders slumping. They shouldn't be shouting and having fights out in the open and he could see the guard stationed at the Hidden Bek's doorway staring at them with a threatening glare. Revan glanced where Carth was looking past him and thought of snapping the guard's neck through the Force. The thought of violence relaxing him somewhat, Revan decided he didn't need more dead bodies to explain and stared back down at Carth. From Carth's point of view he was the one causing the delay in their search for Bastila and Revan shook his head, annoyed. They were wasting time now bickering.

"Alright so what are we going to do about it?"  
Carth asked and Revan wondered just where the Telosian got the notion of pulling rank on him. Kaera seemed to think the same thing as she glanced at the Commander at her side incredulously. Tauryn had just said they should talk to the Hidden Beks. Carth had just pulled rank, offering only speculation to the debate and no solid facts. The truth of the matter was Carth was trying to hide his discomfort at Tauryn Katarn's attitude. The man was invaluable, having gotten the Jedi off the _Endar Spire_ and gotten them gear as well as documents to give them access to the Undercity. It was making the Republic Commander feel useless, like dead weight though he knew he was contributing somewhat, he felt like his skills could be put to better use elsewhere. Revan seemed to agree with Carth's thoughts, reading into the soldier's emotions.

"We need to cover more ground. Kaera, as a Jedi you have some diplomatic training, yes?"  
Kaera nodded, her brow furrowed slightly while Revan turned to Carth.

"She can't give away that she is a Jedi and while she can be skilled with a blade, a sword if not a lightsaber. I doubt she would be much good with a blaster rifle if she's never used one and she could use some backup. I can move faster on my own, no offense to the two of you and I should scout for a way into the Undercity. I have a feeling that is where most of our answers lie. I think the two of you should head to the Hidden Bek base, get any information you can and let them know where we stand. Take these and I'll see what I can find out down here, is that acceptable to you, Carth?"  
Revan turned his dark eyes to the Telosian, his face unwavering as he waited for the older man's input. He held out the security clearance documents Sarna had gotten them and waited. Carth reigned in his annoyance and his own doubts and nodded slowly, impressed with Tauryn's suggestion. He knew the man could blend in and that he could take care of himself and while Kaera looked slightly offended at being assigned a bodyguard, she knew as well as Revan that her skill with a blaster was somewhat limited and that an Echani sword would not deflect a blaster bolt. Stop, maybe but not deflect.

"Sounds like a plan, what do we need these for though?"

Revan rose a brow at Carth, smirking slightly through his anger.

"I'm going to find a way into the Undercity, contact me on the comm if the Beks give you anything useful and head back to the surface with these. I'll find a place to hold up for the night but I'm going to be searching that hole as long as possible and if at least one of us is down here, we aren't making a total waste of time. It took us a long time to get from the apartment to here and I don't plan to spend all day tomorrow just getting back down here."

Carth looked a bit uncertain, glancing between his two companions as he rubbed his beard thoughtfully.

"Maybe it would be better if we all found some place down here to stay for the night..."

Revan shook his head, checking their surroundings a moment in suspicion before speaking again when he knew no one was nearby to hear them or take a shot at them.

"Undercity is a nasty place. Rakgouls and all those lovely dredges. Probably better if we don't all get killed at once if it gets bad down there. I can handle myself pretty well and I can run pretty fast but not if I'm trying to cover someone else. If we all die down there; there's no one left to find Bastila and then the Sith win. None of us want the Sith to win so I say we use this plan, Kaera?"  
The Jedi Knight looked thoughtful before she nodded her agreement. Tauryn Katarn's plan was sound and it would be wise, especially with how dangerous the lower levels of Taris were to exercise some caution. There would have been more strength in numbers but then, if they were all together they could all be killed or captured at the same time. Something that Kaera wasn't in a rush to do.

"I agree with Tauryn, Carth. We'll cover more ground and while I'd rather be certain we were all together and well, we need to stop wasting time."  
Carth grumbled something unintelligibly before he nodded tightly. He sent a suspicious glare towards Tauryn before he and Kaera moved towards the Hidden Bek base and the guard standing at the doorway while Revan glanced down at the bandaging on his left leg. The wound had healed almost completely, a simple red gash marring his skin but otherwise he was fully functional and suffered little pain. He was surprised Carth hadn't voiced his opinions of his ability to run with a leg injury but Revan knew the Republic soldier was likely looking at the big picture, trusting a Jedi more than an Ensign with a mysterious luck streak and Mandalorian ties. Revan toyed with the idea of simply tossing his communicator aside and forgetting about the other two humans before he shook his head with a sigh and began heading towards the lift to the Undercity, remembering well its location from his last visit to Taris.

Carth and Kaera spent a few minutes trying to convince the Hidden Bek guard to allow them access into the Bek's base to speak with their leader, Gadon Thek. The guard had been suspicious and cold but all in a sense of loyalty to her gang's leader and after seeing through the facades of the two humans, the guard allowed Carth and Kaera access to the Bek base. Upon entering, Carth rose a brow slightly in surprise at how many Hidden Beks were milling about the base, speaking to one another in amicable tones while they all cast cursory glances at the two strangers. Glancing straight ahead for fear of offending the carious gang members, Carth spotted a dark-skinned human, fairly well on in his years wearing some expensive-looking armor. Studying the man and the violet-skinned Twi'lek standing as a guard, Carth took in the man's unnaturally white eyes and his bald head before he studied the man's built. The dark-skinned human was built like an old soldier, healthy and fit but declining in his strength and skill with the decay of time. The Twi'lek standing beside the man wore a hostile expression, a deadly vibroblade at her hip while she held a powerful repeating blaster, training it on Carth and Kaera as they approached.

"Stop right there! Who do you think you are, coming into our base!"  
Staring at the business end of the repeating blaster calmly, Kaera held her hands to her sides, opening her palms to show she meant no threat. Carth stood rigidly, his body tensing to doge and return fire if needed. While Mission Vao had spoken in favor of the Hidden Beks, the Republic soldier knew they were gang members in a gang war and that they might be a little quick to shoot and slow to question.

"My name is Kaera Nurr, this is Carth Onasi. We were told your leader, Gadon Thek could help us with locating a crashed escape pod containing a fellow soldier of ours..."

The Twi'lek's eyes narrowed as she recognized the names. They were the names of Republic fugitives that the Sith were searching for. She had little doubt the two in front of her were Republic soldiers, especially with how trusting they seemed. The Republic's citizens didn't know how life was like on the Outer Rim. They didn't know being nice would get you killed or robbed or enslaved. Zaedra, the violet-skinned Twi'lek bodyguard felt resentment forming in the put of her stomach, a tingling at her throat causing it to tighten as she sneered at the two.

"Now Zaedra, calm down. We can't go randomly shooting people on the streets or we'll be just as bad as the Vulkars."  
An unreadable expression crossed Zaedra's angular features and she lowered her blaster rifle, keeping it at the ready but pointing it to the ground.  
"Very well. You can speak to Gadon but if you make one move to your weapons you'll be dead faster than you can say 'Vulkar spy.' I'll be watching you..."

With that final threat, Zaedra backed away a few steps, keeping her weapon ready and her gaze focused on the two strangers. The tensed male in particular as his hands rested on his weapons. Carth, catching the cold look on the Twi'lek's face pulled his hand away from his pistols, not relaxing but hoping he wouldn't give the woman any reason to misinterpret his defensive position and start shooting. Silently wondering if Tauryn's presence would have caused a shootout, Carth was silently grateful their group had split up while Kaera began speaking with Gadon Thek, her sharp blue eyes focused on Gadon's artificial white eyes. If she noticed, she showed no signs of discomfort and she spoke to the man as she would have anyone else.

"We're from the Republic ship that was destroyed several days ago. We've been searching for a companion of ours... A female officer named Bastila. My companion and I, as well as another of our group, Ensign Tauryn Katarn were directed to you by Mission Vao. We were told you have no love of the Sith."

Impressed by Kaera's diplomatic tone, Carth relaxed slightly, seeing the Twi'lek guard had also relaxed upon hearing information that could be verified with the Bek's sources.

"I've heard about your officer friend. The Vulkars have her and are offering her as a prize in the upcoming Swoop Bike Championships. Whoever wins that race will get your friend as well as control of the Lower City. Almost everything down here revolves around the money those races make and if the Vulkars win, they will have control of the races as well as your friend..."

Gadon's tone was serious and to the point. Their Swoop Accelerator had been stolen by his protégée, Brejik and the traitorous man had turned on him and joined the Black Vulkars. With his betrayal and assurances to the Vulkars of victory, Brejik had been given leadership of the Black Vulkars and had declared an all-out war on his former gang. Having thought of Brejik as a son, it pained Gadon greatly.

"I don't suppose they'll just give her back to us if we ask nicely then?"  
Carth's bitter tone had returned and the Republic Commander wore a disgusted look on his face. Slavery was outlawed in the Republic and the Sith Empire until six months ago. Darth Revan had deemed the use of slaves a weakness and as such had actually taken steps to end the slave trade. Only prisoners of war were treated as forced laborers and most of the time the Sith had used them as training implements, killing them in practice sessions for their own amusement to improve their skill. With Revan's death Malak had sundered most of his former Master's old laws, not seeing that Revan had kept a steady balance by keeping slaves out of the equation. Slaves were known to destroy empires from the inside out and that was something Revan hadn't wanted to inspire. Insurgents were bad enough on captured worlds and Darth Revan had taken steps in minimizing legitimate reasons for revolts. Still it hadn't been a cake-walk.

"Your best bet would be to win that race but I'm afraid the Vulkars have an advantage over all the other contestants..."  
Kaera sighed mentally. She could sense the man's genuine concern for the people of the Lower City but like all gangs, power revolved around some type of control pattern and she could sense the careful manipulation of the man before her, planning how to use their presence to his advantage. He was smart and a good man but he was also a leader who knew what was required of him.

"What would that be?"  
Kaera asked when the man hadn't elaborated. Gadon frowned, looking slightly troubled with trying to take advantage of strangers but he knew his hands were fairly tied. Plus it would help not only the Beks but the strangers as well.

"A Swoop Bike Accelerator we designed was stolen by the Vulkars. If they enter the contest with it there will be no beating them and your friend will be sold into slavery... however. We know the Vulkars are holding the Swoop Accelerator in their base not far from here and if you could retrieve it for us, we would be more than happy to let your friend go free."  
Carth's suspicion was for once useful as Kaera was set to agree to that in a heartbeat.  
"Hold on a minute. We could just break into the base, get Bastila and not even bother with your part..."

Kaera was surprised by Carth's paranoid logic. It made sense. Gadon looked even more troubled before he spoke.

"Yes but you can't get in the front door. You'll have to go in the back way and I just happen to know someone who can get you in. I'm sure your friend is also being kept elsewhere to keep her unspoiled for the races. As a prize they won't harm her..."

Zaedra turned from glaring at Carth and Kaera to stare at Gadon incredulously.

"You can't be serious, Gadon. She's just a child!"  
Gadon glanced at his second in command and his bodyguard with a sigh, shaking his head as he responded in a flat tone brokering no argument.

"Mission knows the Undercity better than anyone and she knows the back way into the Vulkar base. She can take care of herself."

Carth looked extremely bothered by this. Negotiating with a gang for information was one thing but putting a child in danger was where he drew the line.

"No deal. We're leaving."  
Carth turned to leave, finding after a few steps that Kaera wasn't following. With a sigh, the Republic Commander stopped and turned back, crossing his arms over his chest as he glared at the Jedi. He could already guess what Tauryn's answer would be and he clenched his teeth together from shouting at the Jedi when she asked the Bek leader where they might find Mission. It had been nearly an hour since they'd last seen the girl and she could have gotten anywhere.

"Your best bet is to find her in the Undercity or the sewers. She and her Wookiee friend Zalbaar usually explore down there, searching for things to scavenge. Remember, if you bring me that Swoop Accelerator we'll help you find Bastila. Oh and you'll need documents to get into the Undercity."  
Kaera glanced at Carth, wondering if the Telosian would smash the datapad with their clearance in protest to the shady plan. The soldier merely gave Kaera a cold look she'd seen him direct at Tauryn from time to time before he turned and left the base. Assuring the Bek leader that they would consider the offer, Kaera caught up with Carth outside of the base, jogging to catch up as the Republic Commander tapped his communicator.

"Carth! Hold on a moment!"  
Carth ignored Kaera, angered at how low they were forced to come as he listened to Tauryn's acknowledgment.

"Keep your eye out for Mission. Plan is to break into the Vulkar base's backside and get a part for the Beks. Bastila is being held by the Vulkars and offered as a Swoop Bike Championship reward and Mission is apparently the only one who knows the way there."  
Carth closed the link before Tauryn could gloat over his earlier 'rescue' of Mission or offer any suggestions to the plan. The plan was solid, loathe as he was to admit it and he wasn't going to waste anymore time. Pushing aside the sick feeling in his stomach, Carth tried not to envision his own son, not much older than Mission when he'd lost him on Telos. He couldn't even look at Kaera let alone Tauryn and the Commander ignored his companion's attempts to speak with him, instead fixing Kaera with a blank, dead stare. He'd seen a Hell of a lot of bad things as a soldier but what he was doing crossed a moral line he'd refused to cross. Carth kept telling himself there was no other choice, that Bastila was what was important but he couldn't get the image of his dead wife out of his mind. He'd never found his son's body and he couldn't imagine seeing Mission Vao, dead like his wife because of the Sith and their damned war. It crossed a line he wasn't ready or willing to cross, even for duty and he would have nothing to do with it. Kaera as a Jedi outranked him and she had overruled his vote.  
"Carth, there's no other way and you've seen Tauryn fight. Not to mention Mission's Wookiee friend. She's lived down there her whole life, Carth. Its her home, not some war zone..."  
Understanding Carth's emotional turmoil as she herself was feeling the same guilt at placing a child in danger, Kaera reasoned with herself that Mission would have been more than able to navigate the Undercity safely. She'd never seen the darker areas of the galaxy, her surroundings about as impoverished as she'd ever seen them and she couldn't have known what Carth had known. She couldn't have known that no matter how bleak someone's existence was or how miserable their lives were that it could always be worse. Carth spoke only briefly with Kaera and only in a clipped military fashion for the rest of the evening and both humans fell asleep with conflicting feelings of the next day's events as well as concerns for Tauryn Katarn's decision to stay below and scout the Undercity.

Canderous of the Mandalorian Ordo Clan was not a happy mercenary. He'd somehow been roped by Davik into playing sidekick the one of the Exchange boss' collectors and he was growing more and more suspicious of his employer. Davik's last payment was only two-thirds what was promised. He had no doubt in his mind it had to do with the blockade and while he was a patient man, he wasn't one to be made a fool of. The former Mandalorian General knew he would likely never see the other third of that payment and he had a feeling his next payment would only be half of what was promised. Shaking his head in disgust as the collector gave a sharp whistle, Canderous strutted out from behind a support column, hefting his massive blaster cannon. The weapon was designed like an oversized rocket-launcher and able to fire in a similar fashion as a blaster rifle. It also had the same kick as a rocket launcher with only the slight problem of its cumbersome form. It was perfect for intimidation and Canderous had a nice six-inch Mandalorian vibroblade attached to his leg if he had to act quick. His weapon was intimidation and rarely did he have to resort to cracking any skulls together.  
_"H- hey, Canderous. Us- w- we didn't know you were working for Davik..."_

Two Trandoshan Black Vulkars stared fearfully at Canderous' burly form. The Mandalorian's steel-gray eyes narrowed as his chiseled and muscular face twitched in amusement. They knew damn well he worked for Davik, they just didn't know he was the one coming to collect. The Vulkars quickly paid their debt and a little more on the side which Canderous and the collector split amongst themselves before Canderous caught movement out of the corner of his eyes. Spotting a relatively tall man with a strong, but athletic build clad in black and red, Canderous studied the man curiously, seeing a smirk of amusement on the man's bearded features. A smirk he knew only too well from his Mandalorian brothers and sisters.

"Those Vulkar cowards aren't even worth our time. Davik tries to keep them in line but they're stupid enough to try to challenge him."  
Canderous offered a fairly condensed review of the Lower City's political situation and he saw the man nod slowly, each Mandalorian taking stock of the other.

"I'm guessing you're an Ordo?"  
Canderous smirked, studying the man's features carefully. A light brow rose in surprise as he recognized the other man's sharp features and he grinned toothily at Revan.

"You're a Bloodraven. Didn't think there were any of you left."

Revan carefully thought of his answer before responding.

"Working for the Republic under the name Tauryn Katarn. Gotta say it's a bit of a challenge. Lots of Sith to shoot anyways."  
Canderous chuckled, shaking his head as he lowered his blaster cannon and adjusted the strap, leaving it hanging in front of him should he need to shoot something fast but easing the weight from his arms to his shoulders.

"How the mighty have fallen."  
Revan nodded absently, a look of understanding crossing between the two but for opposite reasons. Both had been in positions of power and reduces to soldiers in foreign armies or organizations on a world they had both conquered in the past. It was degrading and embarrassing to the warriors in them but seeing another warrior in the same position was of small comfort.

"Good thing I have no love of the Sith."

Canderous stated, referring to his fellow Mandalorian's status as a Republic soldier. Revan smirked, knowing if the other Mandalorian had any honor he would leave him be for respect of the fallen Clans. Neither the Ordo nor the Bloodraven Clans would survive the next generation and both Mandalorians knew it. Sighing, Canderous turned his gaze to the collector he was supposed to be guarding before he nodded to Revan.

"Well I'd better get these payments collected if I'm going to get paid. See ya around."  
Revan returned Canderous' nod, watching the Mandalorian move to flank the Exchange collector. Brushing his beard as he pondered his next move, Revan reached into his cloak's pocket, pulling out his headset and tapping the comm. Carth's voice relayed the plan to break into the Vulkar base using Mission's help and Revan frowned at the tone in the man's voice. Sighing as the connection was cut abruptly, Revan glanced down the winding corridor towards the Hidden Bek base, considering seeing if Carth were on board or the Jedi had pulled rank before he recalled the Republic Commander pulling rank on him and scowled. Turning on his heel, Revan's black boots clicked, sending echoes through the Lower City walkway as Revan approached the Sith soldier guarding the lift to the Undercity. Pulling datapad from his cloak with copied set of clearance papers supplied by Sarna, Revan flashed his clearance to the guard, listening to the soldier's warning with a simple nod of acknowledgment before he entered the lift and waited in silent thought as the lift descended deeper into Taris' underground. When the lift doors opened, Revan was accosted by two young men dressed in rags and threatening him with a rusted and jagged piece of metal.

"Nobody uses this lift without paying the toll!"  
The one holding the makeshift knife stated, his companion quickly throwing in his own threat.

"Yea! Five credits!"

Well, not so much a threat as a demand. Revan rose a brow, calmly pulling off the headset and pocketing it. Digging into his pocket, Revan pulled a credit chip for fifty credits, frowning down at the credit chip before he looked up into the hopeful and greedy expressions of the two filthy, rag-clad muggers.

"Oh I'm sorry. All I have is a fifty. I suppose you're going to have to break it for me."  
Revan smirked mentally, keeping his face dead serious. The two muggers looked confused at first before anger flickered in their eyes. Shrugging, Revan placed the credit back into his pocket and waited for them to make a move. It'd been a few hours since he'd killed anyone and these two clowns had pissed him off. Giving the two a condescending smile, Revan widened his eyes as he spoke in a falsely-enthusiastic tone.

"Hey! Maybe you can get your filthy hands on the other eight credit chips I'm carrying just like it!"

Taking in his appearance and his weapons, the two muggers looked at each other uncertainly before a young woman rushed over to the lift from a nearby encampment of natives.  
"Get out of here, you two!"  
Shalena shouted, waving a fist at her fellow Outcasts. The two scurried away like roaches and Revan sighed, disappointed that he wasn't able to kill anyone. Shifting a curious look to the young woman approaching him, Revan took in her features, noting she was pretty but otherwise unimpressive and much too young for him to consider killing on the spot for interfering. The girl proceeded then, seeing that Revan wasn't stalking away to apologize for her fellow Outcast and then to tell him pretty much her life story, without being prompted. Revan stared at the girl with a blank expression, idly wondering if he should kill her for being so annoying and assuming he cared. Dressed head to toe in leather, black with a little blood red to add to the look was meant to show a complete lack of interest in communication without a weapon but the girl persisted and Revan felt pressure growing behind his eyes before he caught something the girl had said about the chief of their impoverished village.

"I should speak to him? That man over there?"  
Revan's voice was polite and his expression open when he asked Shalena to confirm. The girl nodded eagerly to the direction Revan was pointing; going off about some prophesy about a savior to her village while Revan looked between the girl, the chief of the village and the prophet or whatever she had called some grimy old man sitting by a filthy hovel before walking away, not bothering to stop at either location. Shalena trailed off, her mouth gaping at the man's rude dismissal of her and she felt frustrated tears form in her eyes. The way the man had asked, seemingly interested only to ignore her was cruel and she felt anger growing in her heart as she followed the man, scowling at his black-clad back while he moved to the gates of the village where Hestra was screaming with the gate guard. The dark-clad man's sharp features twisted into a cruel scowl as he looked between the screaming woman and the gate guard.

"He's not going to make it!"  
The guard shouted to the woman, his face a mask of uncertainty and fear. The woman, a brunette with dark brown eyes with tears streaking down her face turned to the guard, glaring at him with a look of desperation on her face.

"He will make it! Run Hendar, Run!"  
Some distance from the wall surrounding the village a young man about the same age as the woman screaming at the guard was running as quickly as he could, his arms loaded with various components and scraps salvaged from a downed Republic escape pod. Revan, having taken in what was happening as soon as a Rakgoul mutant appeared, giving a gurgling squeal as it pursued sighed, glancing around for somewhere to sit down while the drama played out. There was no way in Hell he was going to get bit by a Rakgoul four minutes after getting into the Undercity. To Revan's surprise the red-haired man, Hendar made it to the gate with the Rakgoul still fairly far behind him. Plenty of time to open the gate and close it again, if the guard hadn't panicked.

"Quickly! Open the gate! There isn't much time!"  
Hendar was shouting to the guard to open the gate, the guard looking between the rapidly approaching Rakgoul, Hestra and Hendar.

"The- They're too close! I can't risk them getting into the village."  
Revan sighed when the screaming woman as he had labeled her in his mind spotted him, quickly kneeling before him and begging him to save her foolish husband. Amused by the kneeling but otherwise annoyed, Revan shifted his cloak to reveal his blaster pistol. Setting the weapon to its highest powered blast, Revan handed the weapon to the woman, nodding to the gate.  
"Save him yourself."  
Shalena watched in shock as Hestra ordered the guard to open the gate, rushing out and shooting at the incoming Rakgoul with the upworlder's weapon while the upworlder himself did nothing but watch. Revan watched with an uncaring glare as the Rakgoul was killed and the woman returned his pistol, not bothering to thank him. Returning his weapon to its holster, Revan did not spare any of the Outcast villagers a glance as he stepped out into the unprotected expanse of Taris' undercity, his dark eyes scanning his surroundings for threats. He would have let Hendar die at the hands of the Rakgouls if he'd had any choice but he had done what he was trying to do on a galactic scale as the Dark Lord. He gave the woman the means to protect her husband and herself and she did so. Had she turned the weapon on him to threaten him to do the fighting for her, Revan would have killed her and her husband to spite them. He wasn't there to do their work for them and he wasn't upset with the lack of thanks. The woman had done the work and he smirked at the thought of how much screaming she'd be doing when she and her husband got home. He'd likely never hear the end of it if her display at the gate was any indication of her temperament.

Sighing, Revan glanced around, taking in the distant support columns and foundations that held the upper levels of Taris' city above and he stared for a few moments at the flat, dark gray ceiling of the undercity while he stepped over piles of dirt and debris that had rained down from above over the course of time. Artificial lighting kept much of the Undercity lit in a dim, pale white glow but distant rays of light filtering from above told Revan of the crashed escape pod's locations. While Carth had given him the update on Bastila's situation the former Dark Lord of the Sith still had to track Mission Vao down and he suspected the young Twi'lek would be searching the downed escape pods like most of the rest of the world was. He just hoped he didn't have to deal with any Rakgouls in the meantime. Sighing when he saw a scuttling creature who's skin was pale white and glistened with a type of slime, Revan pulled his pistol from its holster, checking its setting quickly before he sent a shot directly into the Rakgoul's massive oval-shaped head. The creature's maw hung open, taking up nearly half of the mutant's face leaked saliva and poison from its fangs leaking to the dirt of Taris' surface. Revan stretched out his senses through the Force, feeling more Rakgouls approaching and sighing as he took off in a half-sprint. A group of three silver-armored Sith with a red-armored captain leading them were holding a defensive position near a pile of fallen duracrete and Revan waved at the Sith, making sure to keep his pistol pointed in a non-threatening manner. The Sith allowed Revan to approach their position and the red-armored captain approached Revan with his blaster rifle at the ready but otherwise pointed away from the newcomer.  
"I take it you're one of the mercenaries sent down to help us locate the crashed escape pods?"  
Revan produced his datapad, showing the captain the clearance Sarna had gotten him. The Sith captain took the datapad, his faceless helmet offering no view of his expression before he nodded and handed the datapad back to Revan.

"Sarna's a lovely girl."  
The captain muttered, two of the three Sith flanking him laughing. Revan merely smirked, raising a brow at the four Sith.

"Much more lovely when she's not in all that shiny armor."  
The Sith all laughed at that, relaxing their stances as they kept their eyes open for approaching Rakgouls or other threats. Revan holstered his pistol, motioning to a nearby pile of Rakgoul corpses and a dead Sith trooper who's armor was torn apart to reveal a series of gaping wounds. Three other Sith lay scattered about the area, a multitude of Rakgoul corpses littering the area.

"Part of your patrol?"  
The Sith captain shook his head, pulling out a syringe and handing it to Revan.

"They were ambushed a few hours ago. We came through here and ran across a Twi'lek girl and a Wookiee and she told us they were here. Would have been rude to kill her and we don't think she was involved since they were obviously killed by Rakgouls. We're almost out of serum and we're going to go scout out a crashed pod to the east. You're welcome to join us..."

Revan pocketed the Rakgoul serum, keeping his expression carefully schooled.

"Sounds like that Twi'lek girl might know this area better than most... You happen to see which way she and the carpet went?"

Several chuckles at the joke to the Wookiee's expense eased the tension of the Sith and the Captain gestured towards the southwest of their location.

"Said something about looking for salvage in the sewers. I wasn't paying attention too much but she went off that way."  
Revan nodded his thanks, offering a crisp salute to the captain before moving off in the direction of the sewers. The Sith collected their gear and began heading east and the former Sith Lord knelt beside one of the dead Sith, looting the Sith's blaster rifle and checking for damage before he pulled a fresh power cell from the mutilated Sith's belt and loaded the weapon. Keeping the blaster rifle at the ready, Revan reached out with the Force, carefully keeping track of his surroundings.


	11. Chapter 10: Poison

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 10: Poison

Rakgoul were a bothersome breed, Revan decided as he felt one of the mutant's mouths close on his left forearm. Teeth dripping saliva and a thick venom-like toxin scraped against the Mandalorian metal of the gauntlet, crushing the edge of the blaster rifle he had wedged between his wrist, hand and the gaping maw. The weapon's barrel was red-hot from prolonged fire and scorched the Rakgoul's mouth, creating a sickening smell that crossed between rotting and burning flesh. Revan's face twisted into a disgusted sneer as he pulled back his left arm slightly, the Rakgoul's weight pushing down on him before he delivered a sharp blow with his elbow into the side of the creature's head. The Rakgoul squealed, its mouth refusing to let go and Revan tried to roll the mutant's weight off, unable to find the leverage on the ground he allowed the Rakgoul a moment of dominance as he pulled a six-inch vibroblade from his boot, sliding the deadly blade into the side of the creature's glistening white skull. The Rakgoul screeched, flailing wildly as it finally released its death grip on Revan's blaster rifle.

With the alpha of the Rakgouls no longer attacking the meal, two more Rakgoul eagerly moved towards Revan. The former Jedi Knight threw his useless blaster rifle at one, spinning in a dodge as he crouched and his blaster pistol appeared in his right hand. Stunned by the blaster rifle, one of the Rakgoul staggered, losing its footing and scrambled back to its feet while the other took a running leap at Revan. Revan threw a punch with his hand holding the pistol, imbedding the barrel of the weapon two inches into the Rakgoul's chin before he squeezed the trigger twice and threw its weight off of him, his pistol going with it. The beasts were faster than he gave them credit for and he was losing his weapons fast. Unable to get his sword out in time, Revan called the Force around him, giving strength to his body and speed to his movements and he caught the second Rakgoul around the head, ignoring the clawed hands that scratched at him, tearing his arms and ruining his leather outfit. A sharp twist brought a loud snap and the Rakgoul in Revan's grasp shuddered before Revan tossed it aside, immediately pulling his sword from its sheath and jumping, dodging yet another Rakgoul attracted by the scent of fresh blood and the noise of the fight.  
Landing in a crouch, Revan rolled as he leapt to his side, vibroblade flashing as it sliced the charging Rakgoul across the chest. The Rakgoul stumbled in its charge, falling to the ground while Revan turned in the same motion in mid-air, driving his vibrosword into the wounded alpha Rakgoul that was again charging towards him, his knife still imbedded in its head. The force of the Rakgoul's charge sent a shockwave up Revan's arm and the former Dark Lord of the Sith was thrown off balance, hitting the ground with a grunt as a cloud of dust rose around him. Twelve Rakgoul corpses lay around Revan in various states of dismemberment and death and the former General of the Republic pulled on his vibroblade, freeing it from the dead Rakgoul alpha. Four more Rakgoul circled the deposed Dark Lord cautiously, some form of intelligence from their previous lives carrying to their mutated forms. Without waiting for the imminent attack, Revan took the opportunity to focus the Force, sending a powerful shockwave of energy rippling outward from his position.

The wave of Force energy caught each of the Rakgoul, lifting them into the air and Revan held his control, sweat and dirt matted on his face and clothes as he breathed heavily, his Force-form off from six months of being suppressed. Dust shot up into the air around the Rakgouls, the dead being pushed back and flailing lifelessly from the surge of energy. Opening one of his hands, Revan made a grasping gesture, a quick and violent twisting motion of his wrist snapping each of the four Rakgoul's necks. Releasing his hold, Revan did a quick check through the Force, finding that Malak had sensed the Force-energy. Quickly hiding his presence, Revan waited, breathing heavily as his own blood and that of the Rakgoul mutants dripped at his feet. The Force was bombarded by a dark tide and Revan remained perfectly still, his eyes searching for more Rakgoul while he remained still for fear of attracting Malak's attention any more than he already had. The probe through the Force lingered for several minutes before Malak's search withdrew and Revan sighed, waiting as he kept his presence firmly suppressed. Moments later, the dark tide of Force energy returned as Malak again searched the area through the Force. Wiping his sword's blade clean, Revan began collecting what was still useful of his weapons, using what remained of clothing on one of the Rakgoul corpses to clean them before securing them and moving on silently.

Hand digging into his cloak's pocket, Revan closed his fingers around the syringe of Rakgoul serum with a sigh of relief. The relief quickly turned to panic when Revan felt something wet seep through his gloves. Reaching further, Revan pulled out the syringe, a look of comical disbelief on his face as the Rakgoul serum leaked from the shattered glass of the syringe. Feeling the sickness from the Rakgoul bite already working its way through his system and unable to call on the Force to help cleanse his body of its poison with Malak's eyes watching so closely, Revan tossed aside the vial of serum with a disgusted and angry sneer. Backtracking through the Undercity, Revan came across the position he'd met the Sith Captain and patrol, the bodies of the other Sith patrol still present. Shifting through the remains carefully, Revan found three vials of serum and a carrying case with a syringe which would have been good to know about an hour before. Immediately injecting himself with one of the vials, Revan made certain the case was secured before he sat down, sighing as the serum worked its way through his bloodstream. The medicine and the poison in his blood made the former Sith Lord weary and Revan felt his eyelids dropping slightly, his head snapping up as he brushed a gloved hand across his face, smearing dirt and grime with the gesture.

"This could have gone better..."  
Revan muttered, sweat matting his hair and his armor and clothes feeling much heaver than they had in a while. Exhausted physically and mentally from the fight as well as from the conscious effort of keeping his Force presence invisible to Malak, Revan fell back on his Mandalorian training to keep his eyes open. Little tricks and precautions to keep from falling asleep in a war-zone played through his mind and the former Sith Lord waited, feeling the poison in his body being neutralized while the medicine brought on a feeling of nausea. Rolling over to his hands and his knees, vomiting out a slimy, viscous fluid that looks suspiciously like blood mixed with Rakgoul venom brought a look of disgust from Revan. That as well as some of the Tarisian cuisine he'd been eating earlier. Coughing violently, Revan moved away from the mess, his hand finding his blaster pistol as he heard a noise. His head was throbbing, a beating drowning out most of the ambient noise of the Undercity and Revan blinked as he saw a small blue blur approaching him. The blur stopped moving when he pointed his pistol at it but Revan lowered the weapon, his eyes rolling back into his head as he collapsed to the ground.

_"Funny... I didn't think Rakgoul were blue..."_

Revan mused to himself as his exhaustion hit full force and he all but fainted. Though he wouldn't admit swooning there on the spot, no self-respecting Mandalorian would ever pass out, he must have been struck on the head from falling debris, yes that was as good an explanation as anything. The truth of the matter was the Rakgoul serum was made from a powerful sedative extract as well as a mixture of Rakgoul venom and many other ingredients that would knock out even a Bantha.

Mission Vao frowned down at the unconscious body of the man who'd helped her out in the Cantina several hours before. He looked like Hell and she suspected he'd been bitten by a Rakgoul. Nervous, Mission pulled out her blaster pistol, cautiously approaching Revan's unconscious body and nudged the pistol from his hand with the toe of her boot.

_"Out cold..."_

Mission mused silently, spotting the bite as well as the complete change in the man's appearance. He looked like he'd fallen head-first into a trash compactor into a jagged pile of metal and... other things. Still, he had helped her and the least she could do was help him. Especially if she was going to get any help freeing Zalbaar from the Gammorean slavers that had almost gotten her as well. She'd seen two other humans with the man, Tauryn Katarn she thought his name was. Sniffing slightly as she wiped her eyes, Mission looked around cautiously, wondering where the Sith patrol she had talked to before had gone. A vial or two of Rakgoul serum would have been nice to have but it looked like they'd cleared out. Picking up Revan's pistol as she holstered her own. Mission stared blankly at the mess of Rakgoul blood on the man's clothes, making the connection with his tracks in the dirt and the horde of dead Rakgoul she'd spotted outside of the entrance to the sewers a few kilometers away. It had looked like a Rancor had killed them all aside from a few tell-tale scorches from blaster bolts and Mission looked down on Revan with a wary expression.

"You'd better not try anything funny, pal."  
Mission warned, shivering slightly and wondering just how dangerous the man was until she spotted something in his cloak's pocket. Okay, so she was trying to see if he had any credit chips but could you blame a girl for being curious? Shaking her thoughts away, Mission pulled out a small black and metallic case. Opening the case, Mission saw two vials of Rakgoul serum and a third mostly empty vial. Glancing down at the man and then to the small kit, Mission decided she'd wait until he awoke to see if he'd injected himself or not. It was dangerous but she knew two injections of the stuff would kill him. Checking his pulse and resting her hand on his forehead, Mission made a slightly disgusted face as she wiped off the grime and sweat from her hand on Revan's cloak.

"Well bub, you better wake up soon or we're gonna be in trouble... We can't stay in the open for too long, not with a fresh kill nearby."  
Keeping Revan's pistol in one hand as she checked their surroundings warily, Mission moved to the Sith corpses, searching amongst them for a medkit. Thankfully one of the Sith had a fairly undamaged one and the Twi'lek teen brought it back to Revan, pulling out a syringe and an adrenaline stim. Collecting herself, Mission unstrapped Revan's red leather vest, frowning at the dull silver armor shining back at her. Undoing one of the straps to the armor, Mission pulled away the front section, finding Revan's weak heartbeat Mission looked between the needle in her hand and the man laying in front of her.

"Well, now or never..."  
Mission sighed, pressing the needle into Revan's chest and pressing the injector. The reaction was immediate and Mission found herself on her back, looking up into two golden-yellow eyes. Revan's skin was much paler after the effects of the Rakgoul disease and the serum and he ignored the needle hanging out of his chest as he looked down into the startled blue face of the Twi'lek. The light and fury in Revan's face did not vanish and his expression held no recognition. Fever was apparent in his flickering gaze and Mission swallowed, her brown eyes wide. A shifting of weight and Revan poised his hand for a killing blow. Mission looked between the hand and the face, squeaking out a terrified plea.

"Hey! Hey, it- its me Mission! Mission Vao? Tauryn, remember me?"  
Revan's mouth set into a firm line, his eyes seeing a ghost of his past and his power flickered around him, drawing Malak's attention once more to Taris' Undercity. Through the Force Revan could feel Malak's searching and frowned, his killing blow to Mission stopping. She had looked like a Mandalorian for a moment before his eyes focused on something besides the color blue so commonly used in Mandalorian armor and he made out a Twi'lek's features.

"Malak..."

Confused and a little scared, Mission decided it would be best to just nod her agreement. Revan blinked, frowning down at the Twi'lek as he slowly disguised his presence in the Force yet again. It was like playing a subtle balancing act on a wire suspended between two cliffs and he eased his hold on Mission, clearing his throat as he stood, offering the Twi'lek a hand. Mission let out a shuddering breath, shivering at how close she'd just come to being killed and took Revan's hand.

"Sorry, Mission. Rakgoul venom and serum was messing with head. I didn't- I didn't hurt you did I?"  
Mission absently rubbed her wrist where Revan had grabbed her and forced her hands against her chest, pinning her in the blink of an eye and she laughed shakily.

"W- who? Me? N- no you- you didn't- didn't-"  
Mission laughed again, shaking her head.

"N- no. I- I'm fine."  
Revan stared at the Twi'lek with a skeptical look, taking a step closer he gently took her wrist, frowning at the bruise forming. Something alien struck Revan's heart for a moment and he recognized it as guilt. Not the type of guilt he'd felt when he listened to Carth's story but a new kind of guilt. Something he'd done directly, something that held no benefit on a galactic scale. A simple, unconscious and petty act of evil that he rarely took part in pulled on his heart, making the former Sith Lord frown as he released Mission. The Twi'lek rubbed her wrist, giving the former Sith Lord a wary look as she tried to find something to say. That had been scary and she could tell now that Tauryn Katarn was a deadly man. He didn't seem to have enjoyed hurting her wrist and if she were honest it didn't hurt as much as her pride. After all she could take care of herself and she didn't need anyone's help. Well... except Big Z. Some part of Revan felt compelled to use the Force to heal Mission's wrist but he refrained, still sensing Malak's curious probes into the area. Malak would not make the connection unless he directly sensed Revan and the former Sith Lord wasn't about to tip his hand just yet.

"Are you sure you're fine? We can get you to the Upper City, talk with doctor there I know... The last time I used that move on someone I shattered their wrist..."  
Mission opened and closed her hand experimentally, moving her fingers to test the injury before she shook her head.

"No, no. Its fine, just bruised a bit."  
Revan nodded, keeping his eyes trained on Mission's wrist for a moment longer before he turned, checking their surroundings and making sure no more Rakgoul were trying to sneak up on him. When twelve of the mutants decided he'd looked like a tasty meal and they all attacked him at the same time he'd had very little time to summon the Force and there were advantages to fighting sentient beings when compared to mindless animals. For one the sentients would pull their blows or shots for fear of injuring themselves or their companions while Rakgoul merely charged head-first with mouths gaping for fresh flesh. A small look of distaste curved Revan's lips before he noticed Mission staring at him warily.

"Look, kid-"  
Mission immediately cut Revan off, an offended look crossing her youthful features as she all but forgot the pain in her wrist and jabbed Revan's chest with her uninjured hand, planting her injured hand on her hip in an indignant pose.

"Hey buddy, I ain't no kid. I'm fourteen! That's adult enough for Mandalorians!"  
Revan rose a brow, deciding some things were better left unsaid.

"Okay... Mission then, I take it there's a reason you were trying to help me and there is a reason your Wookiee friend isn't here?"  
Mission's anger dissolved to a look of worry and Revan found the ridiculous notion within him that he actually cared. Wanting to laugh aloud but finding it an inappropriate time or place, Revan calmly rased his hand to run through his hair, scowling at the grime on his leather gloves as he thought better of the gesture and merely crossed his arms. Mission still had his blaster but he wasn't going to bring it up just yet.

"Big Z and me were ambushed by a bunch of Gammorean slavers, he threw himself at them and- and then told me to run. I- I thought he was right behind me but they got him! Please, Tauryn! You have to help me, nobody else will help me, even the Beks won't help me... but- but I can't just leave him there he's my friend!"  
Revan ignored the grime on his gloves to rub one of his temples. Glancing down at his appearance, Revan shook his head and chuckled as he returned his gaze to Mission's pleading eyes.

"You must be desperate to come ask me, Mission. I look like a Bantha just ran over me."

Mission eyed Revan briefly, silently agreeing though she didn't say so for fear of annoying the man. He was a stranger but she had to free Zalbaar. Revan sighed, seeing the pleading look on Mission's face was going nowhere and glanced up at the ceiling of the Undercity high above his head. Throwing his arms out and wincing slightly at the pain of his rapidly healing wounds, Revan offered a shrug skyward before turning his gaze back to Mission.

"Why not, I suppose I owe you for waking me up and not leaving me to a Rakgoul... though I may have a favor to ask of you later..."  
Mission looked surprised for a moment but quickly buried the look under a suspicious look.

"What exactly are you asking me to do, bub?"  
Revan brushed off his cloak absently, ignoring his durasteel breastplate and kicking it away in annoyance. He'd have to get some new clothes though he could probably save the cloak. Yet another annoyance to add to Taris' seemingly endless supply of obstacles.

"My friends you saw at the Cantina and I need to get in the back way to the Black Vulkar base. I heard you were the one to talk to about that."  
Mission nodded absently, part of her wondering if she could convince the guy to pay her for the trouble before she remembered Zalbaar and a nasty surprise just outside the back entrance to the Vulkar base. It'd been a while since she'd seen the towering Rancor but then it had also been a while since she'd tried to sneak past it into the Vulkar base.  
"It's a deal. You help me get Big Z and I'll show you the way."  
Revan nodded, smirking slightly, the smirk tinged with a bitter edge. He'd sensed Mission's thoughts well enough to know a nasty surprise awaited him at some point. Gammoreans were difficult to kill conventionally but then, he was fairly good at killing things. Shot to the head should do it. Moving to the Sith corpses, Revan found yet another Sith blaster rifle that was functional, though this one was a lighter repeater. Shaking his head, Revan collected a spare blaster pack for the rifle, glanced at his pistol still in Mission's hand and rose a brow silently in question. Mission glanced at the sonic pistol, laughing nervously as she offered an apologetic smile to Revan and returned his pistol, quickly drawing her own as she looked around warily. Rakgoul could be sneaky and she couldn't let her guard down too much, even with someone else there. She wasn't sure enough of Tauryn to expect him to watch her back just yet.

"You're going to have to lead the way, Mission. I'll keep a watch if you wanna get this over with fast we should double-time it back to the sewer entrance."  
Mission nodded, grimacing slightly at the thought of so many Rakgoul corpses that littered the entrance. She knew somehow Tauryn was responsible and since she hadn't seen any other bodies between there and the dead patrol she wondered how one man could kill so many Rakgoul and only with a pistol and a sword.

"You did that, huh?"  
Mission asked after several moments of silence. Revan sighed, nodding as he gave a simple answer.

"I was a bit angry at the time..."  
Remembering it had looked like several had their necks broken, Mission decided she wouldn't press too hard for curiosity's sake. The guy just gave off a Mandalorian vibe and she knew from trying to talk to Canderous Ordo that he probably could break a Rakgoul's neck with his bare hands and kill a dozen more. She'd seen Canderous fight a few times and each time, she found herself glad he'd never actually carried out his threats to rip out her headtails and strangle her with them if she wouldn't leave him alone with his drink. Deciding Tauryn was a bit more socially inclined than Canderous, Mission filed her questions away for later, hopefully after they freed Big Z. Glancing upwards at the sprawling canopy of Taris' Undercity, Revan sighed as he felt Malak's curious Force-probe ease away. Being so close to his old friend and apprentice while being significantly lacking in megalomania was boring him. Enough so that he actually reflected on their relationship from the end of the Mandalorian wars to Malak's betrayal. In truth he couldn't fully blame Malak for his actions.

The trek to the sewer system was less than exciting, the sight of the Rakgoul he'd killed earlier being the height of their journey. With the addition of water and rusted durasteel, Revan fell back on all of his Jedi and Mandalorian training not to gag as the air grew thicker with an unpleasant odor. Decomposition, rot and mold was heavy in the air and it seared his lungs enough for him to wish for his old mask and its atmospheric seal. Mission didn't seem so bothered, having grown up around the smell and the Twi'lek briefly glanced at Revan with amusement before Revan's cold glare wiped the smirk off her face.

"Sorry."  
Mission stated, smiling nervously in apology. She didn't know the man and she found joking with a complete stranger who had helped her and she in turn helped and was yet again helping her was a bit of a task, given his surly demeanor. Revan brought up his pistol, frowning at a distant noise in the rust-coated passageways. The sewers of the Undercity of Taris stretched for miles in all directions, rotting away from lack of repair and housed more than just Rakgoul. The corridors were well-lit compared to the Undercity's night-like ambient lighting but the reddish-brown of all the walls seemed to absorb what little light there was in the sewers. Water and waste was channeled through vast winding networks of pipes and tunnel-like drainage tubes where ancient machines continued to recycle Taris' waste. It was strange how well the machinery continued to function despite the passage of time but Revan shrugged off his doubts and curiosity, having seen the Star Forge at work nearly twenty thousand years after its construction.  
"They don't make them like they used to..."

Revan muttered, earning a grin from Mission. Sensing an ease of the tension, Revan decided to pursue a conversation while they worked their way through the generally abandoned section of sewer tunnels.

"So how exactly does a Twi'lek street urchin end up best friends with a Wookiee?"  
Revan asked off-handedly, covering their movements with a sweep of his pistol as he kept his Force-senses attuned carefully to any nearby threats. Mission looked surprised a moment before carefully turning her attention to her surroundings. It wasn't any of Tauryn's business but strangely enough, Mission found she wanted to talk to the man, clear her mind of her worries over Zalbaar and the threat of imminent death at Rakgoul teeth. Keeping her attention focused for any threats but relaxing somewhat in Revan's presence, Mission spoke softly, her brown eyes narrowing when a sound drew her attention in the distance before she dismissed it and moved to the next hint of danger.

"I've lived on Taris most of my life, came here with my brother a while back but I was too young to remember much else... One day I found Zalbaar being bullied around by a group of Vulkars and I spoke up for him... after that we just kinda fell in together. I take of him as much as he takes care of me, you know?"  
Revan carefully filed away the missing information in Mission's brief explanation of her life, sorting carefully through what he was learning of his companion. He found himself admiring that the girl could gain the companionship of a Wookiee as most Wookiees were hard to gain the respect of. Whatever Mission had done had to have spoken volumes to Zalbaar for the Wookiee to accept an outsider's companionship. Wookiee rarely ventured from their homeworld of Kashyyyk and those that did were extremely anti-social and made Malak look like a conversationalist.

"I hear you there... Most Wookiees don't leave Kashyyyk unless they were forced to..."  
Revan spoke in more of a statement than a questioning manner, not needing to use the Force to prompt Mission to elaborate. The Twi'lek seemed to enjoy talking, or at least talking about things she knew about and Revan decided it provided a good distraction from his own problems. Mainly an unsettling amount of guilt that was being laid on his shoulders by his interaction with Carth and the woes of Taris he found much too familiar for comfort. He'd thought he'd taken care of Taris years ago when he'd first arrived but not half a decade later it was back to its old corrupted ways. It was almost as if he, Malak and the other Jedi and Republic soldiers at the time had done nothing to ease Taris' suffering. It was a hollow victory of sorts.

"Yea... he came here from Kashyyyk fleeing slavers I think... or some other problem... he's not too big on heart to heart conversations and I know enough about him to keep quiet."  
Revan nodded, making sure Mission could see the gesture and slowed, pressing himself against the right side of the corridor as he peered through narrowed eyes down into a junction of a processing center.

"Looks like we've got some company... I make out three Gammoreans."

Mission tensed a moment, surprised at how sharp the other man's senses were before she peered cautiously down the corridor, nodding her agreement.

"You have a stealth field generator?"  
Mission asked in a near whisper. Revan frowned, shaking his head. Stealth wasn't his style though subtlety was and he could appreciate the caution of being unseen by enemies. Hence his assassin training program on Malachor V. HK-47 lacked any and all subtlety when given free reign but could blend in as a protocol droid if needed. In any case, Revan could be stealthy if it was required.

"Nope, but if you have a spare I don't see any problem with sneaking past them... unless you want to kill a few to even the score for them taking your friend?"  
Mission blanched a little, wondering if Zalbaar was alright before she noticed the slightly teasing gleam in her companion's eyes. Deciding to accept the diversion of her worries, Mission checked her stealth field generator.

"Sorry, Tauryn. Only got the one."  
Revan nodded absently, holstering his pistol as he drew his vibroblade. The sword gleamed in the dim lighting, notches in the sharpened edge a testament to its use. Inspecting the edge critically, Revan longed for the lightsaber, his eyes glazing as he remembered a very important fact that made him feel like a monumental fool. He'd left the looted Sith lightsaber on his armor and the armor was back at the site of the Sith patrol in the Undercity. Likely the armor and bodies were stripped clean by this point. Sighing in disgust at himself for being so distracted as to forget the weapon, Revan glanced down at the blood-red leather vest that acted as his torso's only protection.

"I just realized I left my breastplate back there..."  
Revan muttered, shaking his head. Mission glanced at the dark-clad human with a frown, shrugging helplessly.

"Sorry."  
Revan shook his head, deciding to make due with what he had. He'd go back after they found the Wookiee for the lightsaber. Mission pressed a switch on her belt and Revan heard a slight humming before the air beside him became displaced and the Twi'lek's small form vanished from sight. Seeing Mission's outline barely visible through a small distortion in her stealth field, Revan nodded to the young Twi'lek, moving ahead as quietly as he could in his half-armored state. His injuries from the fight before had nearly healed and he barely noticed the strain as he moved in the few shadows offered by the sewer's design. Mission's form moved past Revan slowly and cautiously and Revan spotted the barely discernable outline of a vibroblade as she moved to stalk a Gammorean that was lumbering about lazily, its head jerking up as it smelled an alien scent. Acting quickly, Revan leapt from his cover, imbedding his vibroblade into the chest of the Gammorean that had just walked by the corridor he was taking refuge in. The pig-like alien let out a squeal, alerting its two companions to Revan's presence and the former Dark Lord removed his blade while the Gammorean collapsed, its massive green-tinted body shuddering in its death rattles while its ancestral battle axe dropped from its meaty paw.  
"Right."  
Revan muttered, drawing his pistol with his left hand and firing on the Gammorean charging him to his left. The one on his right came to a staggering halt as Mission jumped onto its back as it passed her, driving her vibroblade been into its spine and paralyzing the alien slaver. Revan's sonic bolt struck the charging Gammorean in its face and it squealed in pain while raising its axe blindly. Mission's eyes were wide as she glanced down at the still living but paralyzed Gammorean beneath her and she quickly snapped her head to the side, seeing Revan shoot a second sonic blast into the charging Gammorean's chest before he did a ducking roll, coming to stand behind the beast as it overshot him with a blind sweep of its axe. Impressed, Mission unconsciously twisted her vibroblade, ending her foe's life while Revan adopted a very lethal-looking stance before delivering a quick two-handed thrust into the Gammorean's back. Not exactly noble head to head combat but you couldn't take risks with how thick a Gammorean's hide was or with how tough they were. The Gammorean screamed in pain while Revan twisted the blade, letting it drop from his grasp as he climbed on the bulbous alien's back and took hold of its head. Keeping his hands clear of its sharp tusks, Revan pulled, twisting the head to its side and felt a tiny bit of strain before the Gammorean dropped with a loud snap, shuddering before falling still.  
"Not bad..."  
Mission muttered, more than impressed by the skill of her companion. She hadn't expected him to be that fast but then, if she were right he was a Mandalorian. Still, Canderous was more for blunt force trauma and hacking and slashing an opponent until they were dead. Revan wiped his blade clean on the Gammorean's clothing, taking a cryoban grenade from the alien's belt with a raised brow.  
"This will help a little, what does your have?"  
Revan asked Mission as he moved to his first kill, spotting a concussion grenade with a flash grenade to match it on the Gammorean's belt. Mission found a few credit chips but decided not to share it with her companion. Revan glanced at Mission, smirking slightly as the Twi'lek hid a few credit chips. Moving quickly to an adjacent corridor, Revan glanced back to see Mission right on his tail, a serious expression on her face.

"You did well back there."  
Revan stated, the seriousness on Mission's face flickering with surprise before she smiled slightly.

"Thanks... those Gammorean slavers had it coming to them though... I'd hate to think of what would happen to us if they got both Big Z and me..."  
Revan nodded absently, plastering a sympathetic look to his face before he schooled his features into a stoic and serious mask. Mission seemed more comfortable with his presence after the first fight and he found her ability to shrug off the violent kill she'd just done admirable and disturbing. Disturbing to the Jedi raised part of him but acceptable and to his Mandalorian and Sith side. Mandalorians were considered adults at the age of thirteen and normally were sent first into battle to prove their ascension into adulthood and prowess as warriors.

Scattered Gammoreans, normally in groups of two were scattered around each corridor of the sewers and Revan found his viboblade's edge was beginning to dull by the time they'd reached where Mission said that Zalbaar was captured. Signs of battle as well as Gammorean and Wookiee blood littered the area but no bodies and Revan frowned as he and Mission moved deeper into Gammorean held territory, the Twi'lek and former Sith Lord through stealth and muscle able to overwhelmed the small Gammorean patrols. It was rather anticlimactic when they reached the base camp of the Gammoreans and Revan decided he'd had enough of dulling his sword's blade.

"Lets see if there's anything we can use around here, alright?"  
Mission nodded silently, rubbing a bruise on the side of her left shoulder with a wince. A Gammorean had tried to throw her off before she'd managed to pierce its heart and she'd hit the ground pretty hard. Revan was still fairly unscathed by their battles with the Gammoreans but a fresh gash from a Gammorean battle axe had torn his cloak near his left forearm where it had glanced away from his armored vambrace. Moving back from their position outside of the sealed entrance to the Gammorean hideout, Revan spotted a sealed doorway against the corridor wall and checked the corridor access panel.  
"Well this is... ancient..."  
Revan muttered, glancing to Mission before returning his gaze to the lock. Mission frowned, moving to his side and tilted her head as she studied the lock.

"This is one of those old fashioned locks, all gears and switches, no pressure seals or magnetic locks... I think I have something in my kit here..."  
Mission began digging in a small black pouch at her side and Revan smiled in amusement when he saw her pull out several different lockpicks, each highly illegal.  
"Quite a collection you have there."  
Revan chuckled as Mission smiled brightly, not at all ashamed of her profession. Making quick work of the lock, Mission backed away quickly as the door's mechanism groaned, the sound of ancient gears turning as the door opened half-way. Grinding to a halt, the rusted door offered barely enough room for Revan to get through and he frowned, motioning for Mission to stay behind him while he moved into the dimly lit side-room.

"Stay out there, I might need you to get me out of here if these close."  
Revan stated lightly, half-serious, half-joking. The Twi'lek smirked, nodding as she pulled her blaster pistol and checked the corridors for roaming Rakgoul and Gammorean. Luckily they'd managed to avoid Rakgoul though Mission had no doubt as to her companion's ability to handle the mutants, especially after seeing him kill nearly a dozen Gammoreans with a blade and without the benefit of a stealth field generator like she had. A scraping noise drew Mission's attention back to the side-room and she frowned as Revan appeared, dragging an ancient droid's rusted form behind him.

"You any good with droids?"  
Revan asked, shoving the droid through the half-opened doorway before following and kneeling beside the decaying droid. Mission shook her head, an apologetic frown on her face as she knelt with Revan, glancing over her shoulder.

"Sorry, Tauryn. I'm good with locks and computers... know my way around a mine or two but I'm pretty much clueless with droids..."  
Revan nodded absently, having plenty of experience with droids. He'd all but built HK-47 and programmed it himself and aside from a few unique components from the Star Forge he had fashioned the ridiculously efficient Jedi-Killer assassin droid himself. Checking over the decaying wires and casing of the droid, Revan knew it had been sitting down there for a while, likely a century since most of the modern droid alloy was resistant to rust if not impervious to it.

"Mind if I borrow one of your lockpicks?"  
Revan asked, pulling his knife from his boot as he wedged the sharp Mandalorian metal blade into the droid's chassis. Mandalorian metal he found much more reliable than a durasteel-cortosis alloy. Cortosis in its pure state was as brittle as glass and while when combined with durasteel it was effective, it couldn't top Mandalorian metallurgy. At least not in his mind. A duel with Mandalore the Ultimate using a lightsaber had gotten rid of any and all doubts in his mind of the resilience of Mandalorian metal. Mission hovered over Revan, glancing down the corridor in both directions as she chewed on her bottom lip anxiously.

"You're not going to break it are you?"  
Mission asked in a joking tone. Revan stopped digging into the droid's chassis, turning his head slowly so he was staring directly into Mission's face. He was there to help her save her friend, not worry about minor expenses. Mission flinched at his blank expression, digging out one of her lockpicks and handing it to Revan.

"Sorry."  
Mission muttered as Revan reached out slowly, taking the lockpick and inspecting the modified security slicer critically before using his knife to pry open the droid's ancient chassis and using the pointed needle-shaped end of the lockpick to dig out the ancient wires of the droid's circuitry. The wires were a maze of copper and silver, their coatings long since rotted away and Revan sighed, returning the lockpick to Mission.

"I can make it walk around, maybe explode shortly there-after... damn this is ancient."  
Mission nodded her agreement, never having seen such simple wiring in a droid before. Lifting the droid's battered form, Revan carried it towards the entrance to the Gammorean base, setting it down quietly as he put his knife back into its scabbard in his boot and twisted several wires together, using the power cell from his shoulder-slung blaster rifle and hot-wiring the droid. A spark and a trail of smoke in the air caused Revan to flinch involuntarily as he stood, removing his hands from the droid's exposed wiring and gave it a simple kick. Much to Mission's amusement and disbelief the droid walked on its six insect-like mechanical legs towards the doorway, the sensors keeping the door sealed opening to reveal four Gammoreans, one being the chieftain of the group. The Gammoreans stared at the droid in confusion as it moved into the center of the room and exploded.  
"Stealth."  
Revan whispered to Mission. The Twi'lek nodded quickly, activating her stealth field while Revan motioned for her to wait. The four Gammoreans gathered around the smoking droid's remains, puzzling over the strange device before a small spherical object looking about the same size as a grenade dropped in the droid's remains from the still open doorway to the adjacent corridor. The Gammoreans squealed in pain as the grenade exploded, flooding the room with bright light that blinded them. Soon after two more grenades entered the room, one exploding in non-lethal fragments that melted away and mixed with charged pressurized core of gas. The gas ignited, imploding with concussive force and stunning the Gammoreans before the third grenade detonated. The third grenade exploded into a burst of foam-like liquid that hardened seconds after exposure to the oxygen in the room and froze the Gammoreans in place. Revan glanced around the corner, rolling his eyes as he raised his looted blaster rifle, firing four clean shots into the immobile Gammorean's heads.

"That was ridiculously easy."  
Revan muttered as the cryoban grenade's effects thawed and left only a suspicious stain of water on the ground. Toxic water, but water none-the-less. Ignoring the smell of burnt flesh, Revan moved to one of two adjacent doors, firing point-blank at the control switch and frying the lock in place. Mission moved in behind him, her stealth field dropping as she looking down at the Gammorean corpses warily. She had barely seen anything that had happened it was so fast but she wasn't going to complain. Squeals and the sound of metal on metal could be heard behind the door Revan had sealed and Mission moved to the other door, pressing her ear against it and hearing shuffling and growling behind it. Recognizing her friend's voice, Mission pulled a lock slicer from her collection, examining the ancient lock silently before she used the device to release the magnetic seal. The lock released and the door groaned open to reveal Zalbaar's angry and towering features.

_"Mission? Am I glad to see you!"  
_Zalbaar growled, a confused but happy expression crossing his face as the Twi'lek all but leapt at him, wrapping her arms tightly around the Wookiee.  
"Big Z, its good to see you too!"  
Revan felt his throat tighten in disgust. The entire situation was too sappy for his tastes. Half-wishing for the Wookiee to sprout out threats for his imprisonment towards the Gammoreans, Revan was disappointed when the Wookiee glanced at him curiously, all anger erased. Anger was a good tool and if he found himself stuck with the two he'd have to teach them how to use it better. Though he did admit sometimes anger could be detrimental to one's self-preservation.

_"Who's that with you, Mission?"  
_The Wookiee asked in his native tongue. Revan sighed to himself, forcing a half-smirk and nodded to the Wookiee.

"My name is Tauryn, I met you and Mission in the Cantina in the Lower City earlier today... well yesterday if this little side-trip has taken as long as I suspect it has..."  
Revan felt the weight of his communicator in his pocket and wondered how many times Carth and Kaera had tried to reach him in the hours since he'd turned the device off for stealth reasons. Deciding to deal with it later, Revan watched as Mission explained his involvement in the rescue attempt and cringed when the Wookiee gave him a respectful look, staring solemnly at him as it bared its claws and drew its own blood, swearing a life-debt for saving him from a life of slavery.  
"Its... not necessary..."

Revan stated, his voice lacking any tone. Zalbaar growled angrily, insulted by having such a sacred oath being so lightly turned away.

"Are you sure, Big Z?"  
Mission asked uncertainly, her knowledge of Wookiee culture enough to know that a life-debt was pretty much as serious as it sounded. Zalbaar roared his certainty and Revan wiped his nose unconsciously, looking between the Wookiee and the Twi'lek with a thoughtful expression before he simply shrugged, smiling at the two.

"I'm honored then, to accept your life-debt."  
Zalbaar seemed a bit surprised that Revan was able to understand his language but did not ask too many questions. Revan handed the Wookiee the looted blaster-rifle he had barely used during the entire ordeal and decided a little backtracking was in order. Hopefully his armored breastplate was still amongst the dead Sith in the Undercity. Mission brightened, turning a smile to Revan as she forgot her previous uncertainty. She still owed Tauryn for helping save Zalbaar and she wasn't going to back out of a debt. She wasn't her brother.

"Well, where Big Z goes, I go. I guess you're stuck with me too!"  
Mission smiled, her eyes studying Revan closely for his response. There was a flicker in his eyes but his smile seemed genuine enough as he nodded to her and turned, moving back into the sewer corridor.

"Glad to have you on board, Mission. I'd like to head back to where I left my armor... hopefully its still there then we can get a room somewhere in the Lower City for the night so I can clean up..."

Mission and Zalbaar had no complaints aside from the Wookiee complaining about being hungry. Revan moved ahead, keeping his blaster pistol drawn while the Twi'lek and Wookiee followed him, both having lived in the lower levels of Taris long enough to know not to let their guard down for too long.


	12. Chapter 11: Breaking and Entering

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

AN: My God am I still on Taris?

Chapter 11: Breaking and Entering

The armor had still been where he had left it and Revan thanked the Force briefly for small favors as he trudged through the Lower City of Taris; a Wookiee and Twi'lek trailing behind him as he found a fairly secure area. Secure meaning no Vulkar or Bek bodies were lain about, rotting away after some skirmish in their street fighting. Finding a hotel that was relatively cheap, Revan paid for a room, muttering curses to himself as he entered, discarded his cloak, armor and clothes and went straight into the fresher. Mission stood at the doorway, gaping at the scene for a moment before she snapped her mouth shut, saw Zalbaar's amused expression and laughed nervously.

"I should have known Mandalorians weren't modest about their bodies..."  
Mission muttered, sprawling herself on one of the room's two beds and kicking off her boots. Zalbaar took a seat in one of the room's chairs, scratching at his unkempt fur as Mission stared absently at the ceiling, the sound of running water from the other room joining in with the ambient noise of Taris' Undercity.

_"What is your opinion of Tauryn, Mission?"_

Zalbaar asked, looking up from inspecting his fur coat to see Mission sighing as she chewed on her bottom lip in thought. The Twi'lek ran her agreement with Tauryn as well as his help across her mind as she pondered an honest answer.

"I don't know, Big Z... He seems pretty nice and if he's a Mandalorian he isn't anything like Canderous... at least not in the whole scary threatening way... He seems like a good man..."  
Zalbaar nodded absently, pulling the blaster rifle Tauryn had given him into his lap and inspecting the weapon critically. It looked like it needed to be cleaned and charged but overall it was in good working order. Sparing Mission one last look, Zalbaar began pulling apart the weapon, digging into the bandolier strapped around his shoulder and neck so it ran sideways across his chest. The compartment on the bandolier opened and a small cleaning kit fell out, normally reserved for his bowcaster. His bowcaster was lost to the Gammorean base but he didn't particularly mind. He could always get a new one. Cleaning the weapon, the Wookiee pondered his new companion. Given the life-debt he would have to follow Revan's commands as if he were a slave but if Mission's opinion of the man was accurate, he had nothing to worry about.

Mission Vao sighed, hearing the shower in the fresher stop she hoped absently that Tauryn had left some hot water for her before averting her eyes as the Mandalorian stepped from the fresher, drying himself off with a towel as he inspected his clothing with a scowl. Once dry, Revan wrapped the towel around his waist and collected his dirty and torn garments, deciding to make use of the droid cleaning unit in the corner of the room while he checked over his armor for any damage. Catching Mission's blush, Revan rose a brow, glancing down at himself.

"Sorry, kid."  
Mission sighed, rolling her eyes as she pulled her hand away from her face to shake a fist at Revan.  
"How many times do I have to tell you I'm not a kid!"  
Revan smirked, separating his weapons and equipment from his clothing before setting his clothing in the cleaning unit and starting the cleaning cycle while he sat on the second bed, stretching absently and laying back as he used a blanket on top of the towel for modesty.  
"Life in the military... well... a military-like organization anyways."

Revan stated. He was perfectly comfortable with his body and wasn't vain about his appearance, though he liked to keep in good health and look clean. Mission rose a brow, glancing over at him as she stood and moved to the fresher herself. Being a street urchin she didn't get the chance often to get cleaned up so she wouldn't pass up the opportunity.   
"I get that. So how did you end up here on Taris?"  
Revan brushed a hand through his damp hair, pondering simply cutting it all off since it was such a hassle before he answered Mission honestly. No sense keeping secrets if he were going to be saddled with a Wookiee servant and a Twi'lek along for the ride.   
"I was serving on the Republic ship that was destroyed several days ago. The other two you saw with me earlier were Republic soldiers... well, the man was a soldier anyways. The other was a Jedi Knight."

Mission stopped her trek to the fresher, turning a curious and slightly awed expression to Revan.

"Wow, a Jedi, really? I've never seen a Jedi before... well, except for when I was just a kid and Revan and his Jedi tried to clean Taris up..."  
Mission frowned at the foggy memories. Her brother Griff was there with her at the time and he'd been avoiding the Jedi like the plague instead of asking them for help. She supposed it was because of the same reason they'd left Ryloth after their parents died but she couldn't be sure. Feeling a pang at the memory of her family, Mission decided to press the subject, curious as to Tauryn's other companions.

"So what are they like?"  
Revan smirked, deciding to exercise his humor a bit. He hadn't had a good chance since programming HK-47 and frankly there hadn't been a good opportunity to since then. Mostly mass murders and torture sessions and battle plans and training. Frowning slightly, Revan shrugged off the guilt burning in the back of his mind, deciding to reflect on it later. He didn't particularly feel like joking around at that point, so he decided sarcasm would do well enough.   
"Lets see... Carth, he's from Telos and is fairly bitter about the war. He's paranoid to the point of distraction and frankly I'm surprised we got anything done with him whining all the time... He questions and second guesses just about everything and pulls rank at every major plan... Bloody Hell I've actually accomplished something since I split with him and Kaera..."

Mission rolled her eyes, shaking her head she decided to voice her opinion on the Mandalorian's explanation.

"That's lame."  
Revan nodded his agreement, taking in a breath and blowing it out in a sigh.

"Kaera... was unconscious most of the time. She'd been standing next to a power conduit and it decided to go boom. When she woke up she was a bit stuck-up if you ask me but she's lightened up a bit since. You'll find most Jedi spend their time glaring down their noses at you and most won't bother to condescend to talk to you... I always found them more appealing in combat. Can't have a better person watching you back cause they'll be so concerned about your back their's will be the one to get shot. She seems an alright sort, level-headed though a bit repressed. Your standard Jedi."  
Mission giggled at Revan's explanation of Jedi while she frowned in puzzlement over him.

"I know you're a Mandalorian but what else is there to you?"  
Revan leaned back into his bed, seeing in the corner of his right eye that Zalbaar had set aside his blaster rifle and was curious as well.

"Me? I'm Darth Revan."  
Mission laughed, Zalbaar joining in with her. Most of the Galaxy knew about how the Mandalorians practically worshiped Revan and it was no surprise their companion would joke about that. Mission's laughter slowly tapered off and she frowned when she saw the man's completely serious expression.

"Look, I know Mandalorians well enough to know they practically worship the guy, but come on, Revan is dead! The Jedi killed him half a year ago and Malak sure hasn't wasted any time picking up the slack..."  
Revan rubbed his beard thoughtfully, weighing the pros and cons of Mission and Zalbaar knowing his true identity. Glancing down at the Mandalorian tattoo on his bicep, Revan licked his lips, turning his eyes to Zalbaar and then to Mission. If it got too bad he could ditch Carth and Kaera and no one would be the wiser. Plus the problem with lies was they always had a tendency to come out at very inappropriate times. Still, it was too early to risk discovery and he still needed Mission to get him into the Vulkar base and he still needed the Beks to sponsor the race. His hands were tied until he knew Bastila's location and he didn't want to draw Malak's attention to him just yet.

"I was born on Deralia to the Mandalorian Clan Bloodraven. Revan was from the same Clan... He was a Mandalorian, you know. Anyways I was picked up by a Jedi after a battle where the Clan was wiped out and I fought in the Mandalorian wars before I took the name Tauryn Katarn. I didn't want to deal with any grudges from the war and I took the Republic's side against the Sith. I was assigned as an Ensign on the Republic warship _Endar Spire_ and I was part of the battle group sent with the Jedi Padawan Bastila Shan to confront Malak's fleet. Would have been a glorious battle if we hadn't been pulled out of hyperspace over Taris... and I suppose you know the rest."  
His words had been carefully placed, the statement was a half-truth. No lies, merely parts of the truth left out. He'd straight out told Mission and Zalbaar who he really was and not in a joking manner so he didn't plan on being too upset if they found out who he really was and decided to be offended. He'd been as honest as he could be without jeopardizing the situation and he wasn't going to let Bastila be killed or handed over to Malak. Not when the Sith were so far from their, his original goals. He'd need Bastila and the Republic and the Jedi to weaken them, then he'd have to get his hands on a good deal of credits before he'd go back to his original plan for the Republic.

"Some heavy stuff... you must have seen a lot in the wars..."  
Revan nodded absently, deciding he'd talked enough. Mission seemed a little troubled but offered a smile as she moved to the fresher and Revan glanced at Zalbaar briefly, seeing the Wookiee's thoughtful expression.

"There's a few credit chips on the counter over there by my weapons and whatnot. Feel free to get something for you and Mission to eat... I'm still feeling a bit nauseated from the Rakgoul serum... I'll probably try to get a few hours of rest."  
Zalbaar nodded calmly, returning to his work on the blaster rifle while Revan closed his eyes, drifting into a light Force-trance meant to regenerate his energy. While it wasn't as good as actual sleep, he couldn't afford to let his guard down completely with Malak so close.

Dawnrose once again on Taris, the fifth day following the _Endar Spire's_ destruction and Carth Onasi was a very unhappy man. Kaera had wanted to talk that morning about his problems with Tauryn's leadership. She'd even gone so far as to remind him the Jedi were orchestrating the war and technically she could supercede his orders if he wanted to pull rank on Tauryn.

"He's been doing well... He seems a bit heartless at times but you've seen him work. He knows what is at stake and he is willing to do what is necessary. I may have some problems with his methods but you saw his reaction to Dia's plight and you saw him help out Mission when those Vulkar were pushing her around. For Force's sake Carth he's not a Sith Lord."  
Carth glared at Kaera, trying to put his own thoughts into words. He trusted no one since Telos and Saul Karath's betrayal and while he wanted to trust Tauryn and Kaera, he just simply couldn't let his guard down completely. Apparently Kaera had seen him about ready to pull his weapon on Tauryn on several occasions, her first meeting with Tauryn for one and she wasn't about to have her comrades killing one another.

"Is it because he's a Mandalorian?"  
Carth's glare burned intensely into Kaera's eyes before he closed his eyes, taking a calming breath and sighed, finishing with the straps to his armor before checking the powered battle suit's charge.

"Its because of Telos, Kaera. Because of this war. I can't let my guard down again, Saul- I trusted some of those men that went to the Sith's side and their betrayals had nothing to do with the Force. I- I don't know how to explain it but I just can't trust him. You- you're a Jedi and I know the Order is trying to contain this war but Revan and Malak were Jedi too and I can't... Its hard for me to trust someone I don't know hardly anything about..."  
Kaera rose a brow slightly, surprised that Carth had surrendered the information to readily. Feeling sympathy for the soldier's loss she said nothing as she finished dressing by pulling on her boots and wrapping her hair into a simple ponytail. They hadn't been able to contact Tauryn since just after they'd left the Hidden Bek base and Carth's worry was almost as strong as his suspicion. He seemed angry at himself for being worried for a complete stranger who could in his mind very well be an enemy but she could sense he'd been a good man before the war had turned him into a bitter shell of who he'd once been and that good man was worried about Tauryn. He was also equally angry with Tauryn for not contacting them, not that she could blame Tauryn with how short Carth had been with him on the communicator when they'd passed along the Bek's information.

"I've been trying to accustom myself to your and Tauryn's auras and I know I would have sensed if something had happened to him. He is in no danger, Carth... Well, at least not anymore..."  
Carth looked surprised a moment before he sighed, shaking his head. He'd heard plenty of stories of the Jedi's abilities and he'd seen first-hand some of their fighting abilities in the war. It really came as no big shock that Kaera could sense Tauryn. Still, something about what she said weight on him a moment before he voiced his concern.

"What do you mean, at least not anymore?"  
Carth asked, his features turning suspicious but concern echoing in his voice. Kaera found herself admiring Carth for that. She knew enough of his history to know he was struggling to trust others, he'd even said as much but she found it easy to admire his ability to remain a good man and not be drawn in completely by vengeance and paranoia. Still, the vengeful rage boiling under the man's drawn and weary features was a bit frightening. She'd never felt anyone so intensely focused before and she saw his struggle to remain a good man but find his justice or revenge or whatever it was he sought similar to hers and many other Jedi's struggles against the light and the darkside of the Force.

"I merely sensed he may have been struggling... It could have been a fight or he could have simply been running or had a stomach ache... He seems fine at the moment, I'd say he's sleeping if anything."  
Carth relaxed slightly, the relief palpable. He knew they needed Tauryn but he was also concerned for the man. He may not trust him completely but he wasn't about to wish harm on the man. Chuckling slightly, Carth shook his head and caught Kaera's surprised expression. Clearing his throat and chuckling some more, Carth finally managed to voice his amusement to his Jedi companion.

"So you're telling me a Jedi can't tell the difference between a battle and some bad indigestion?"

The former Dark Lord of the Sith, Darth Revan opened his eyes slowly, listening to the background noise of a holovid playing in the confines of the hotel room he, Mission and Zalbaar were sharing. Glancing at the other bed in the room, Revan spotted Zalbaar resting, the Wookiee's massive form looking strange in the bed while Mission was sprawled across a chair, absently chewing on some type of Tarisian food while she watched. Rubbing his eyes, Revan stretched with a groan, drawing the Twi'lek's attention. Mission smiled brightly, obviously having been up for a few hours if she'd even gotten any sleep.

"Morning sleepy head. Big Z just got to sleep a couple hours ago... You've been out for half the morning..."  
Revan glanced at the chrono on the wall, seeing that it was a couple of hours shy of mid-day on Taris. Sighing, Revan stood, making sure the towel still covered his lower body as he moved to where he'd left his clothing to be cleaned the night before. Digging out the leggings, and undergarments, Revan moved to the fresher, taking a quick and cold shower before emerging, his black pants fairly intact aside from a few tears. Mission studied him closely for a moment before turning back to the holovid, a news anchor talking about the Sith Blockade of Taris and its effects on the local economy. Spotting movement in the corner of her eyes, Mission glanced back at Revan, seeing him looking over his clothing carefully, inspecting the damage done in the previous day's fighting.

"I think Big Z has a kit somewhere in his belt thingy..."  
Mission stated helpfully. Revan nodded absently, deciding his tunic and pants were fine before he frowned at the gash on his cloak. Being clean, the clothing didn't look too badly damaged and he knew most of the tears could be fixed later or covered by his armored plating he wore over the clothing. The cloak though had a fairly large tear along the left and right sleeves where a Rakgoul had clawed at him in desperation and hunger. Donning his durasteel chest piece and making certain its hidden lightsaber was still secure, Revan pulled the blood-red leather vest over, adjusting the straps on his vambraces and his leg, elbow and knee coverings before testing his range of movement carefully. If he didn't make certain the armor was fitted just right he might find himself in a bit of a problem and he had to be sure his free range of movements were unencumbered. Mission watched absently, silently fascinated by the simple act of donning armor correctly. She'd always assumed it was just pulled on carelessly but seeing the way Tauryn tested each range of movement by a simple kata before he would make an adjustment to his armor, she found that her knowledge of armored fighting was sorely lacking.   
"I take it you've been wearing armor for a while now?"  
Mission stated, absently tossing a small piece of Tarisian candy into the air and catching it in her mouth. Revan nodded, stretching to work out the stiffness of his muscles before he pulled on his belt with his blaster pistol and sword. Working quietly, Revan clasped several harnesses together to make certain the weight of the belt did not impede his movements before he pulled on his boots, making certain his boot-knife was secured comfortably.   
"Most of my life."  
Revan elaborated for Mission, drawing his sword and inspecting the edge with a sigh. He'd have to make a stop at a nearby shop at some point and get a sharpening stone as well as a kit for his other weapons. The cortosis woven blade of the weapon hadn't stood up well against the tough bones of the Rakgoul and Gammoreans or their battle axes and crude armor. His knife was still unmarred, its blade sharpened to a razor's edge and not a single notch in the Mandalorian metal.

"Dammit, Tauryn, answer your comm already!"

Revan glanced over a Mission, seeing a guilty expression cross the Twi'lek's face as she sheepishly lifted up his headset from where it was sitting on her lap, out of his line of sight.

"Sorry, I was just... you know seeing if there was anything interesting on it. I thought it was one of those cool portable holovids screens!"  
Revan rose a brow, giving Mission a look that clearly said he didn't believe her while he patiently held out his hand. Sighing, the Twi'lek stood, handing the communicator to Revan as he tapped the comm, wincing as it cut in with static before placing it to his left ear.

"Tauryn here. Can't a fella get a few hours sleep?"  
Carth Onasi sighed impatiently, knowing from a lecture Kaera had given him shortly after leaving their apartment that he should give Tauryn a bit of slack. It had been an order and Carth cast the Jedi flanking him as they moved from the lift to the Lower City a dark look before responding in a tired but civil tone.

"Kaera and I are on our way to the Bek base, are you anywhere in the area and have you managed to locate Mission?"  
Revan caught himself nodding and acknowledged through the communicator, checking that the line was still secure before he noticed Mission's curious gaze. Obviously the girl was curious as to who was contacting him and he would fill her in shortly.

"Found Mission, had a bit of a time of it getting her to agree to help us... Gammorean slavers and a Wookiee involved... don't ask. Anyways I'm bloody starving and the Cantina might be serving something edible. Have you two eaten yet?"  
Carth glanced at Kaera, seeing that the Jedi had heard most of the conversation and was offering him a simple shrug.  
"We could eat. Brought some extra credits from the stash. Should be enough to get us any heavy equipment we might need... I hear there's an arms dealer somewhere down here that has a better selection than anyone in the Upper City."  
Revan rubbed his face to clear away any remnants of sleep as he glanced at Zalbaar.

"How long until you get to the Cantina?"  
Carth did a quick sweep of their location, noticing a few Vulkar gang members milling about the corridors. Barring any street fighting, they would be delayed for a while trying to sneak around them.

"Got some Vulkars on the streets. Kaera and I are going to try to bypass them. About an hour should do it."  
Revan nodded, ending the communication and placing the headset in his cloak's pocket.   
"We're going to meet my companions at the Cantina in about an hour... that enough time for the two of you?"  
Mission nodded absently, sparing Zalbaar a glance before she stretched, switching off the holovid and moved past Tauryn to the fresher.

"No sweat. Big Z is used to getting up fast. He'll be happy to get some more food too I'm sure."  
Smiling at Tauryn, Mission slipped into the fresher while Revan began stretching, using a simple form of martial arts katas to exercise his body and bring him more fully into consciousness. Mission emerged from the fresher several minutes later, doing a check of her own equipment before jabbing a finger into Zalbaar's side. The Wookiee growled in his sleep, drawing a frown from Mission before she made a fist and punched the Wookiee's ribs. Zalbaar's growl grew in intensity and he blinked, glaring through weary eyes at Mission's smiling face.

"Morning Z, you hungry?"  
Forgetting his annoyance, Zalbaar roared his approval to Mission's trail of thought, quickly checking his own equipment before bypassing the fresher and moving with Revan and Mission out of the hotel room. Revan lingered to the rear, making certain they hadn't left anything important behind before he followed, his hand never leaving his blaster pistol until the three arrived at the Lower City's cantina, the bar open around the clock to cater to the vices of all of Taris' inhabitants.

Kaera Nurr smiled in bemusement at Carth Onasi's confused and annoyed features as he followed Tauryn Katarn and the two new additions to their group out of the Cantina. They had received a fairly cut down version of the events leading to the new alliance of sorts and Carth was muttering obscenities to himself about even more people he couldn't afford to trust being around him, not that he was all that distrusting of Mission, he was merely a bit annoyed at being called old. Mission hadn't taken well to being called a kid and had snapped back at Carth about how he wasn't her father, though he was certainly old enough to be. He'd of course taken it badly and had decided to end the argument to dwell on his past while Mission skipped ahead of the group to stand beside Tauryn as he led the way to the Undercity. Zalbaar was in the rear, cautiously scanning for any threats while they approached the lift to the Undercity. In such a large group they weren't much of an easy target for the scattered Vulkar gang members.

"Ease up, Carth. If what Tauryn has said is true, she's lived most of her life only relying on herself and her Wookiee friend. You can't blame her for feeling a bit resentful of your criticism. Remember when Tauryn was talking down to you, how did that make you feel?"  
Carth rolled his eyes, giving Kaera a half-hearted glare.

"I'm the oldest one here, Kaera... well aside from Zalbaar. All I said was that she was doing pretty well for a kid and she bit my head off! I wasn't trying to be a bastard like Tauryn... I wonder if he practices in front of the mirror for being so annoying."  
Carth grumbled to himself some more, missing Zalbaar's amused grin as the Wookiee followed behind. Revan glanced over his shoulder, smirking at Carth as he caught the last part of the soldier's complaint.

"Careful, Carth. You may actually give me some ideas."  
Carth shook his head with a chuckle, waving off Tauryn's amused features as they approached the lift. The Sith guard seemed a bit suspicious of Zalbaar and Mission's presence with the 'mercenary patrol' but dismissed his misgivings as he'd seen the Twi'lek and Wookiee from time to time and knew they likely knew more of the Undercity than the rest of the Sith scouring the place. With a warning of the dangers, the Sith cleared the three humans and two aliens and they worked their way through the Outcast village, Revan completely ignoring everything around him until they'd reached the gate and the guard let them through without question. Carth and Kaera had seemed troubled at the sight of so much poverty around them but Mission and Zalbaar merely wore sad expressions, used to the suffering of the Outcasts though in no way comfortable with the simple fact.

"Glad you're on our side, Mission."  
Carth muttered appreciatively as the Twi'lek sliced into a computer console, hacking into the security network and deactivating the forcefield that blocked access to the back entrance of the Black Vulkar base. The Twi'lek glanced at the oldest human of their party, frowning uncertainly as she decided to accept the peace offering. After fighting off a large group of Rakgoul with Canderous Ordo and a group of Davik's men that had been pinned just outside of the Outcast village the Republic Commander was warming up to the Twi'lek's street-wise abilities.   
"Gee thanks, gramps."  
Carth mock-glared at Mission, smiling genuinely as he worked on a good come-back.

"Yea, I suppose all kids these days need is a good role model."  
Mission glared at Carth, catching his smile and shook off her anger. No sense making enemies early and the old timer wasn't too unbearable to be around. Tauryn vouched for him anyways and with the warning the former Sith Lord had given her, she'd had a bit of time to understand Carth's standoff attitude and look past it.

"Yea... you're not too bad... For an old guy."  
Chuckling, Carth patted Mission's shoulder, stepping back and gesturing for the blue-skinned teen to take the lead.

"You know this place better than me, Mission."  
Mission beamed slightly, smiling as she moved past. Carth caught Revan's raised brow and shrugged at the younger man, uncomfortable with the calculating look the Mandalorian was giving him. Kaera simply smiled and moved past them to catch up to Mission while Zalbaar waited for the two human men to move on so he could bring up the rear.

"You might be in danger of lightening up, Carth. I may actually be tempted to let my guard drop around you, mate."  
Carth chuckled, shaking his head and making a shooing gesture to Revan while the younger man merely smirked. The tempers in the group were easing with the success their search for Bastila and their trek to the back entrance of the Vulkar base was having and tensions were noticeably easing.  
"Get moving, soldier. We've still got a base to infiltrate and a damsel in distress to save."  
Revan conjured up the mental picture of Bastila in a frilly pink princess gown locked away in a towering spire and crying out for help. It was so ludicrous he shared the imagery with Carth as they moved to catch up with the women of their party and Carth snickered in amusement, knowing first-hand that Bastila was anything but a helpless damsel. Revan knew as well and he fought down a small amount of concern as he reached for the bond the Padawan had created in his mind. It was still clouded with confusing and disorienting images but he could sense no physical threat to the Padawan and he allowed himself a bit of relief for that. Bastila Shan was too important to the war, the one still being fought and the one he was planning to simply be snuffed out by some meaningless gang war and not being able to track the Padawan's Force-presence, Revan decided to follow the Hidden Bek's plan. It would be subtle and he only hoped Malak wouldn't be watching the Swoop Races on a holovid or someone was going to recognize Bastila.   
"You know... If Bastila is being offered as a prize in this race... how do we know the Sith won't find out about it and storm the race grounds to get her?"  
Kaera glanced back at Revan, frowning thoughtfully at his question while Mission brushed off their concerned.

"Hey, don't worry about it. The races are underground, completely between the Swoop Gangs. The Sith don't really bother with it so long as the Gang War doesn't escalate to the Upper City and hardly any Sith are even down here to watch it. That and the Vulkars and Beks will be out in force in the streets during the race. There's probably going to be a lot of fighting afterwards..."  
Mission sighed sadly, shaking her head at the thought of even more violence and she moved ahead of the group, cringing when she saw the ramp and side-corridor that led to the back entrance of the Vulkar base. Laughing nervously, Mission drew the other's attention and Revan raised a brow silently in question at Mission's sheepish look.   
"I'm not going to like this, am I?"  
Revan muttered, the look Mission gave him enough to answer the question as he absently rubbed his temples, listening in disbelief to the Twi'lek's explanation of why the Vulkar's back door was so lightly guarded.   
"You can't be serious, a Rancor?"  
Carth threw his hands up in annoyance, his voice bitter and not at all surprised though an incredulous edge tinged his tone. Kaera was busy freeing her lightsaber from its hiding place and moved ahead of the group, subtly reaching out through the Force and seeing if she could effect the creature's mind into letting them pass. The Rancor was strangely unresponsive to the subtle mind trick and Kaera sighed, glancing over her shoulder at Revan's curious look.

"I can't use the Force to trick its mind... It was either tame and well-trained once or is too wild to control."

Carth scratching his beard thoughtfully while Mission kicked the floor with her boot, looking dejected. Zalbaar merely watched the rear, his lip curled into a half-snarl of annoyance while Revan stared at Kaera and vice versa.

"I've seen Jedi throw their lightsabers before... how accurate are you?"  
Revan asked. Kaera sighed, absently brushing a hand through a lock of hair that had come free from her ponytail and shrugged.

"I could probably hit it in its head but I don't know a Rancor's physiology and it could merely maim the creature instead of killing it. Then we'd have an angry and wounded animal to get past..."  
Revan reached beneath his cloak, the sound of a metal switch clicking freed a frag grenade from his belt and he stared at the looted ordinance cautiously before casually tossing it up into the air and catching it. Carth winced, biting his cheek to keep from chastising the younger soldier while Kaera rose a brow at the display.

"Could you get a grenade into its mouth?"  
Revan asked with a smirk, rolling the grenade absently in his hands. Kaera frowned thoughtfully, a bit disturbed by Tauryn's solution while she voiced a concern.

"Perhaps... but the same problem presents itself... We could only maim it and not kill it..."  
Carth reached a hand down to his own belt, feeling along until his hands came across a thermal detonator. Glancing at the powerful explosive warily, Carth offered it to Tauryn, the younger man taking the more powerful grenade while giving his frag to Carth. Moving up to the door, Revan accessed the seal, casually leaning in to get his bearings much to the other's disbelief.

"That's a big one..."  
Revan muttered, studying the Rancor with a critical eye. The room the Rancor stood in was higher than most, a clearance of nearly sixty feet and the Rancor nearly brushed the ceiling of the room in its hunched over stance as it lumbered about the confines of the cavern-like ancient storage facility. The Rancor's skin was a dull grayish-brown and two oversized and massive arms hung from its torso, its undersized legs and a bulbous tail brushing along the floor as it moved. The creature's sheer mass caused the floor to shake as it moved to a half-eaten corpse that was donned in Hidden Bek colors. A face, almost collapsed with narrowed eyes and razor-sharp fangs jutting out in all direction took up the center of the Rancor's body, the entire form lacking a neck.   
"Good news is we'll know if it spots us."  
Revan muttered to the others, not entirely wanting to step into the room. The Rancor would have to turn its entire body to face an opponent rather than turn its head and that was beneficial. Its oversized arms ending in gigantic clawed hands were clumsy as it dug into a pile of corpses it kept hoarded into the corner of the room, collecting a half-eaten Bek body and lifting it to its mouth. Even Revan, hardened as he was to battle and violence flinched at the crunching of bones as he moved back from the scene, absently toying with the Thermal Detonator.

"Okay... Now before I go making the dumbest decision of my life, does anyone have any suggestions?"

Carth, Kaera and Mission each took a glance into the room at the Rancor facing the opposite direction before withdrawing and each shaking their heads in a negative. Revan brushed his beard in a nervous gesture, wishing the others weren't there so he could simple throw his own lightsaber into the thing's brain. Still, safety in numbers and it'd be difficult to explain to the others how it was killed by a lightsaber when they stormed the Vulkar base.

"Alright, Kaera... Lightsaber to its head. Try to get it to scream a lot if not kill it. The thing has a pretty big mouth and I'm a pretty good throw but I doubt your saber would survive..."  
Kaera frowned, looking down at her lightsaber with a sigh as she tested its familiar and comforting weight. Carth was glancing at a dismembered arm near the entrance with a slightly disgusted frown before he caught sight of something within its grasp. A small vial and a datapad. Cautiously moving past Tauryn and Kaera, Carth knelt beside the dismembered arm, keeping the Rancor in his peripherals as he pulled the datapad and the vial from its unfortunate previous owner. Scanning the datapad, Carth rose a brow and smirked slightly, offering an apologetic frown down to the dismembered arm before moving back to his companions.

"Problem solved. Just spray this all over the grenade and boom, Rancor steaks."  
Having been hungry enough to eat Rancor meat before, Revan turned a little green, shuddering at the memory of its unique and extremely unpleasant taste.

"Remind me never to ask you to do the cooking, Carth."  
Revan joked, checking the datapad and raising a brow. The Hidden Beks had synthesized a Rancor pheromone to attract a Rancor and they were planning to drug or kill the creature for a full scale attack on the back entrance of the Vulkar base. It was fairly obvious the full scale attack had failed miserably and Revan had his doubts to the plan, though it seemed the best option. Spotting the disembodied arm, Revan decided its owner wouldn't mind taking one for the team and he opened the hand, forcing the thermal detonator between the death-grip. Taking the vial of Rancor pheromone from Carth, Revan poured the contents on the detonator and the arm, activating a delayed countdown on the device before tossing it into the room. The Rancor caught the scent immediately, its massive form turning as it let out a bellowing roar. Revan and the others backed out of the room as the ground shook with the Rancor's steps and a massive clawed hand reached down, scooping up the arm and swallowing the limb whole.  
"Might want to stand back..."  
Revan moved a few steps back himself as the countdown on the thermal detonator's trigger reached zero and a sound between a roar from the Rancor and an explosion reverberated through the massive room. A spray of red mist coated nearly half of the adjacent wall of the storage room, filling the area with the scent of rancid blood and attracting nearby Rakgoul. The ground shook as the Rancor's massive form collapsed, a hole blown through its throat and stomach as it scraped its hands feebly against the ground, a choking whine piercing the air. Revan rose a brow at the scene, surprised that the creature was still partially alive before he cautiously spared a glance at Kaera. The Jedi moved ahead, activating her azure lightsaber and focusing the Force. The blade arced gracefully through the air and struck the fallen Rancor in its head, the noise the dying beast created replaced by the hissing hum of the Jedi's lightsaber searing its flesh.

"Lets not fight too many more of these."  
Mission muttered, her nose wrinkling in disgust at the smell of burnt flesh and the sight before her. Carth and Revan absently nodded their agreement while Kaera moved to collect her lightsaber, her senses picking up a Force-probe sweeping about the area blindly. Grimacing slightly in the realization that the Sith could very well sense her, Kaera glanced cautiously at Revan, seeing that he was gazing skyward with a furrowed brow. Knowing his aura was suppressed enough to prevent detection, Kaera sighed, suppressing her aura and returning her lightsaber to its hiding place as she pulled her blaster rifle over her shoulder and checked its charge. She couldn't risk using the Force or her lightsaber too actively or the Sith would catch on quickly to them, especially if the Dark Jedi were already searching the area for them.


	13. Chapter 12: Swoops

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 12: Swoops

Two Vulkar guards stood before an inconspicuous lift in a relatively short hallway that was approximately six yards wide and twenty-five yards long with a surface clearance of another six yards. As Tarisian passageways went it was fairly small but it served its purpose as the back entrance of the Black Vulkar base. The reason for such a light guard was a towering Rancor and while an explosion and deafening roar would alert most guards to problems, the two Vulkar guards merely sat on the decaying durasteel floor of the passageway, a deck of pazaak cards lying between the two as they gambled away their credits. A Bek assault with a dozen of their rival gang's members had failed miserably to get past the Rancor two days prior and the guards, the regulars of the afternoon shift when the attack had taken place were not worried in the slightest. The Rancor had been all but impossible to get around and they had no concerns of any infiltrators getting to them. They had the easiest, safest and most boring job of the entire Vulkar gang. At least up until that point.

Revan checked the lock on the door, side-stepping as Mission pulled out a lockpick and sliced the lock. The door opened with a hiss and almost in slow-motion the two Vulkar guards looked up from their game of pazaak, both of their eyes widening incredulously before Carth and Revan charged into the corridor, their blasters spraying the two guards. One was dead by the time the second blaster bolt hit his body while the second guard's hand brushed his forearm, a blue field of energy humming around his body and reflecting Carth's sustained blaster fire. The shield wouldn't hold out for long but it was enough time for the Vulkar to pull his pistol free. Revan, knowing he couldn't get to the guard in time without giving away his Jedi abilities switched his pistol to its sonic setting, the field dampening the sonic blasts but not completely blocking them. The guard staggered, blood leaking from his nose and the corners of his mouth as the sonic rounds struck him before his shield collapsed and Carth shot him in the head and twice in the torso.

"Securing."  
Revan stated clearly, his training as a Mandalorian warrior and his false memories as a Republic soldier kicking in. Revan moved to the bodies, securing the weapons from the corpses and moved to the lift doors, pressing himself against the side of the corridor as he listened carefully to the lift's mechanism. There was no sound to warn of the lift lowering with reinforcements and Revan resisted the urge to check through the Force, able to sense that several dozen Dark Jedi, Malak included were sweeping the area for any signs of Force-sensitives.

"Clear."  
Revan called back to Carth, the Telosian nodding his approval at the military proficiency his companion was exercising in a potentially sustained battle scenario. Kaera, having worked with Republic soldiers before checked the rear, making certain no surprises would come their way while Mission and Zalbaar exchanged lost looks. Carth made a hand gesture to Revan and Revan nodded, holstering his pistol and moving to the lift control console. Checking the security files, Revan turned to Mission, motioning for the Twi'lek to approach him. Mission narrowed her eyes slightly, holstering her pistol as she approached Revan and the console.

"We're going search and destroy tactics, Tauryn. Mission, Zalbaar you keep in the center and provide support for Tauryn. Tauryn will take the front, I'll take the rear... Kaera, any problems or suggestions?"  
The Jedi Knight shook her head, knowing that she had been left out for a reason.   
"I can't use the Force actively at the moment, it seems that Malak and his Dark Jedi are searching for any Jedi in this particular area... likely my use of the Force to kill the Rancor has something to do with it. I will assist Mission and Zalbaar as best I can..."  
Mission frowned, a small furrow of her brow showing her confusion, her eyes gleaming in annoyance while Zalbaar shrugged, doing his best to be stealthy as he moved quietly to the middle of the group. Revan tapped Mission on the shoulder, drawing the Twi'lek's slight glare and motioned to the console, his voice a whisper as he spoke.

"We're going to be going in silent from now on. I need you to have a look on this console and see what you can do about the Vulkar's security cameras. Try looping the camera feed if you can. If not, I might be able to..."  
Mission nodded, turning her full concentration to the console while Revan tilted his head slightly, pressing his ear to the door of the lift and waiting calmly. Kaera knelt by one of the Vulkar's corpses, searching for a security access keycard and finding only a computer slicer which a small blue hand shot out and snatched from her own. Startled slightly at the Twi'lek's speed, Kaera said nothing, merely raising a brow as she looked over Mission's shoulder at the Twi'lek's work. Within minutes Mission had successfully rigged the Vulkar base's cameras and Revan nodded approvingly, smiling.

"Good work, Mission. We're going to work on hand signals now. When I do this, it means stop moving."  
Revan turned, making sure his back was to the Twi'lek as he raised his left hand in a closed fist. Glancing over his shoulder, Revan saw that Mission and Zalbaar were both nodding absently, the Twi'lek with a bored expression while the Wookiee merely gave Revan a blank look.

"When I do this it means to drop to a crouch."

Revan made the fist again, doing the same gesture as before but lowering his fisted hand slowly. Mission rolled her eyes while Zalbaar grumbled unintelligibly. Carth was too busy staring at the body of the fallen Rancor through the open doorway to offer his own eyeroll and Revan continued the explanation of basic hand-gestures, making certain Mission and Zalbaar understood before he was satisfied with moving on to the base. The three humans, Twi'lek and Wookiee entered the lift cautiously, Revan activating the controls with a wary look before the doors sealed and the lift rose with a barely perceptible whirring noise. The sound of an air compressor hissing as it released the locks was their only warning to the doors opening and the five quickly moved to the sides of the elevator, using the sides of the lift as cover, Revan peered through the open doors; making a clear gesture with his hand before he moved forward cautiously.

_"_Now on, no talking, no shooting unless its absolutely necessary."

Revan whispered to his four companions. Each nodded solemnly and the former Dark Lord of the Sith holstered his pistol, carefully and quietly drawing his vibroblade as the battered and worn edge gleamed in the relatively bright lighting of the Black Vulkar base. Stealth and silence would be key if they were to succeed against a superior number of foes and live to escape with the Swoop Accelerator intact. Stepping forward slowly, Revan gestured for the others to trail a little further behind him as he approached a junction in the corridor, the doors of the base all completely sealed though few were locked. Peering cautiously around the slight curve of the hallway and keeping his form as obscured as possible, Revan spotted a single droid, its frame was narrow, designed more for speed than combat it looked skeletal in design, awkward like most of the galaxy's protocol droids. Revan's trained eyes saw the flaw in that cursory inspection. Powerful motors powered the droid's mechanical servos, modifications to its cut-down frame allowed it speed as well as strength. A charred symbol on its chassis showed it to be a modified mining droid and Revan moved back, glancing down at the armored plating secured tightly over his clothing.

_"No way I can rush it without making a lot of noise..."  
_Deciding to take a chance, Revan motioned for Mission to draw her pistol, making a rough covering gesture with his hands before he slowly stepped around the corner, hugging the wall while the Twi'lek's blue features poked out around the corner to watch him sneak up on the droid. The droid's movements were slow, the metal of its frame blackened from age and bearing scars of rust and battle and it continued on its programmed patrol route, its sensors not detecting the very calm and precise movements of the human stalking it. Revan spotted an exposed control panel visible on the droid's midsection. Whoever had modified the droid was more concerned with getting it running and not its actual performance and Revan unconsciously swallowed, slowing his breathing as he moved with silent steps within range of the droid's heat sensors. The droid paused, its head swiveling from side to side before it turned, the sound of fabric and metal plating grinding together as Revan leapt at it, vibroblade gleaming in a powerful attack. Revan pierced the exposed control panel with his blade, feeling a shock of discharging energy passing through his blade. Immediately, Revan jarred the weapon upward, driving its imbedded point downward to disrupt the flow of energy back from seeking his body as the easiest route to the ground.

Energy crackled around the dying droid as its form slumped and its eyes dimmed. The bucket-shaped head of the battered robot tilted downward at its chin and it's hold on its blaster rifle went slack. Revan pulled on his sword, wincing as it screeched loudly, grinding against the metal of the droid's chassis. With a sigh, Revan moved on, motioning for Mission to move up behind him while also motioning to the doors that lined the sides of the corridor. Keeping his eyes opened for security cameras as he didn't fully trust that the feedback loop was working, Revan moved to another turn in the passageway, spotting a secured door with a console beside it. Moving cautiously to the console, Revan tapped on the display, bringing up a rough schematic of the base which he quickly studied with a critical eye. Behind the sealed doorway was the entrance into the Vulkar base's swoop bike garage, a likely place to search for the accelerator. Feeling the others approaching him from behind, Revan motioned to Mission and then to the console, the Twi'lek nodding silently as she took over the burden.   
_"Wow, they really brought in a professional for this one..."  
_Mission mused to herself, a tiny furrow between her eyebrows showing her annoyance at the Vulkar's security measures. A keycard was needed to open the doorways and there was no way around it. The cards were fitted with a small computer chip with a rotating clearance frequency that randomly changed at least once every five minutes and could not be mimicked. A feedback loop through the system would be impossible as the moment the console was pulled open the base would go on lockdown and Mission sighed, glancing at Revan and mouthing a silent question. Revan frowned, his eyes narrowing but nodded, bringing a single finger to his lip to tell Mission to speak quietly.

"It needs a keycard. Whoever programmed this knew what they were doing and there's no way around it. We're going to have to find a guard that has an access card to get through these doors. If I try to force my way through it the base will lock down and... yea that wouldn't be good."  
Mission's words were so silent that Carth couldn't hear them and the Republic Commander fought down his annoyance and suspicion as he concentrated on guarding their backs. Revan glanced between the four before he nodded grimly, pointing to Kaera. The Jedi looked slightly surprised but came closer while Revan motioned for her to follow him to Carth. Mission looked a little put-out but just crossed her arms, starting when she realized it wasn't the time to pout and she cautiously took cover in case any Vulkar came from the sealed doorway. Zalbaar merely wore a bored expression, not unfamiliar with danger and thinking all the caution was a bit ridiculous.

"Alright, Carth. I need you to stay here and keep an eye on these two. Zalbaar and Mission can watch the door while you cover back here. No shooting unless spotted... I wish I had time to get us some silencers but you know how hard those are to come by. We need an access card to break through that door and we need to find a Vulkar guard with clearance. You have any problems with Kaera and I scouting?"  
Carth glanced at the two humans before looking over to Mission and Zalbaar with a frown. He had to strain slightly to hear Revan's explanation but he had no trouble hearing his own voice when he spoke. Louder than he had thought he would be, Carth winced and dropped his voice to a whisper.

"I- I think it might be better if Kaera stays here and you and I scout the place for a guard. I've read your file and I know you have stealth training but if it gets bad... well I'd feel much safer knowing a Jedi was here to watch these two."

Revan considered the point for a moment before shaking his head with a frown. His voice was low, so quiet the background noise almost drowned it out but Carth and Kaera found they could both make out his words clearly. Almost as if he were speaking into their minds. The Force was subtly creating bonds between the former Dark Lord and his companions, so small and so unnoticeable that even Revan was not aware of them. A slight background presence in the Force, scarcely stronger than what was natural was all the Dark Jedi searching for the unknown Force-user saw and they moved on, bypassing Revan's group without a backwards glance.

"Kaera isn't very good with a blaster. We don't want to go shooting anyways so we're going in with blades. May as well leave the rifle here, Kaera. She's a Jedi and I know for a fact a Jedi can walk through a crowded room without anyone even noticing them."  
Kaera frowned, nodding slightly at Revan's statement for Carth's benefit and the Telosian sighed, nodding as he holstered his pistols, taking Kaera's rifle as she drew her curved Echani blade. The Jedi studied the blade, testing its weight in her hands with a mental nod before she and Revan crept away from the group, Mission looking as if she wanted to speak at Revan's gesture to stay put. Zalbaar looked as if he were coiling to pounce, eager to fulfill his life-debt before he calmed and bared his teeth in a silent growl of annoyance. Stealth was not a Wookiee's strong point. Carth adjusted the folding stock of Kaera's blaster rifle, licking his thumb and index finger before brushing the tip of the sight along the barrel, raising the weapon to the ready and switching it to its stun setting. Stun bolts were quieter than blaster bolts and the Commander wiped his eyes before blinking away any weariness he was feeling as he guarded the rear, waiting for Kaera and Tauryn's return.

Revan moved to the middle doorway of the three sealed doors lining the corridor facing towards the lift. The former Sith Lord felt the Dark Jedi's scans of the area easing as they grew bored with their search and decided against encouraging them. Digging out his headset, Revan pressed the device to the left side of his head, pressing the activation switch and reading the scanner information on the red display over his left eye. Not as good as his old mask's sensors but better than going blind, Revan tuned the scanner to a heat-scan, knowing it would see through the walls and not give away his position as a passive area scan would. Two flares of white showed up on the display as it shifted from dark red to almost clear, images in shades of black, white and muted grays appearing before his eye. Two human-shaped objects were discernable within the bright flares and Revan flicked a switch on the device, changing the heat intensity scans to pick up cooler heat signatures. Seeing no evidence of a droid's heat signature, Revan held up two fingers, looking back to Kaera who nodded as she schooled her features, preparing to strike. Revan deactivated the device, returning it to his cloak's pocket and pressed the door's control console as the door slid open with a soft hiss.

"What the-"  
The Black Vulkar guard, a Twi'lek with pale green skin who had moments before been enjoying a drink dropped his glass, going for his blaster pistol while Kaera lunged forward, her blade slicing through the air and cleanly across the Twi'lek's chest. A spray of bright red blood followed the motion of Kaera's upward diagonal strike and splattered the wall behind the Vulkar as he collapsed, his heart pierced in the quick motion. Turning instantly from her fallen foe and forcing down any sorrow the death had caused her, Kaera focused on a young dark-haired human woman wearing a metal collar and dressed in a rather provocative and skimpy outfit. The girl shivered in fear, hiding her face as she shied away from Kaera before she saw Revan, her voice shaky and pleading.   
"Pl- please don't kill me! I- I'm just a slave! I - I don't know anything!"  
Revan crossed the room, his steps quiet through his demeanor no less threatening as he grabbed the young woman before she could try to run away, forcing her hands down so he could look her in the wide brown eyes. Kaera opened her mouth to protest at the threatening manner but snapped her mouth shut when she caught Revan's words.

"Quiet! We're not here to kill you. We're looking for Bastila Shan. A Republic Officer the Vulkars are holding. We're also looking for a Keycard."  
Revan added the last part of his statement by giving Kaera a meaningful and annoyed look. Kaera looked down at the guard she had killed and nodded her understanding, kneeling as she laid her blade across his torn chest and searching his pockets for a keycard. The slave shivered in fear and the adrenaline rush she'd felt at the shock of Kaera and Revan's appearance and she collected herself, Revan's words hitting her as strongly as his grip on her arm. It wasn't a painful grip, just strong and she knew it was a silent warning. His face held no comfort but his eyes, she could see his eyes focused, conveying that he wouldn't harm her unless it was necessary. Swallowing, the slave relaxed the tension in her body, drawing a shaky breath as she stared into Revan's brown eyes.

"The- that Republic Officer? The Vulkars are keeping her under wraps. Brejik didn't want her around his men. Something about keeping the grand prize unspoiled until after the race..."  
Revan tilted his head, a flash of anger crossing his features before it was gone. Kaera stood from her search, holding up a keycard and waving it to get Revan's attention. Revan nodded, jerking his head to the still opened doorway they had charged in from and she returned the nod, moving back while Revan slowly relaxed his tight grip on the slave woman's arm.

"Can you sneak past the guards?"  
Revan asked, knowing the way they'd come in was likely filled with Rakgoul attracted by the scent of the Rancor's blood. Without the Rancor to kill them the Rakgoul would enjoy quite the feast. A disgusted look flashed across Revan's features before he caught the slave wincing and sighed.

"I- you're just letting me go?"  
The girl was young, likely only a few years older than Mission and Revan frowned, tilting his head to the side as he studied the girl.

"No, actually."  
Revan released the girl's hand, driving a quick blow to the back of her neck as he moved forward and caught her collapsing body. Lowering the unconscious woman to the floor, Revan drew his knife from his boot, driving the blade down into the girl's neck while a sharp gasp from behind him caused him to glare back at Kaera. The Jedi's eyes were wide and she held her hands to her mouth, a look of fear and absolute horror crossing her features before Revan shook his head in disgust, twisting the blade as a mechanical click and a slight electrical discharge filled the silence of the room. Kaera felt a lump form in her throat as the slave girl's body convulsed. Sheathing his knife back into his boot scabbard, Revan gently pulled the slave-collar from the slave-girl's neck, moving to sit her body upright against the wall comfortably as he moved to the Vulkar corpse, drawing its half-drawn blaster pistol and setting it in the slave's hands. Kaera's fearful and horrified look shifted to one of confusion as she saw the slave-girl's slightly charred neck. Turning in silent question to Revan, the Mandalorian merely glared at the Jedi, moving until he was beside her before he spoke.

"Those slave collars have an electrical failsafe in them that discharges with just enough energy to make her hurt but stay awake. She would've screamed if she was awake. She'll be out for a few minutes, when she wakes up we'll be nowhere to be found. We couldn't risk her raising the alarm and she would have panicked otherwise."  
Kaera stared down at the unconscious slave sadly before she nodded, seeing that Revan had taken time during the retrieving of the Vulkar's pistol to make it look like a simple cooking knife was used to kill him. Shivering slightly at the efficiency and relative coldness of the display, Kaera gave her companion an appraising and slightly disappointed look, receiving only a stony glare in return. She knew enough about the way the galaxy was to know he was right and that his precaution of staging the scene could buy them time if needed but it was still a bit heartless and she hoped the slave awoke before the Vulkars discovered the scene. Wanting to stay but knowing they needed the Swoop Accelerator, Kaera reluctantly followed Revan as he moved to join the others, her opinion of the man's morality lowering slightly while at the same time her respect for him grew. It was a tough decision that not many would make but it very well may have been necessary. Swallowing the lump in her throat, Kaera watched with a sense of detachment as Mission used the keycard to gain access to the lift to the swoop garage and saw Carth giving her a concerned and slightly suspicious look.  
"Something wrong?"  
The Telosian whispered and Kaera gave a silent, almost hopeless laugh. There was plenty of things wrong if she found herself accepting such a thing as leaving a slave girl, no older than Mission behind to bear the wrath of her masters for a death she herself had caused. Torn between doing the right thing and doing what was necessary, Kaera turned her troubled blue eyes to Carth's concerned brown, feeling the man's compassion and knowing that despite his loyalty to the Republic and his sense of revenge that he would never have done such a thing. She knew he wouldn't have left anyone behind because he had stayed on the _Endar Spire_ until the last possible moment holding the Sith back and keeping an escape pod secured for them. She realized at that moment that Carth, despite being a decorated war hero and an admirable soldier would not have made the cold and almost military decision Tauryn Katarn had. Perhaps it was his Mandalorian nature or his own experiences but she knew at that point that Carth was the better man. At least morally.

"Everything is wrong..."  
Kaera whispered in reply to Carth, knowing that men such as Tauryn Katarn were necessary if the Republic was to overcome the Sith threat. Feeling a war of emotions rising within her, Kaera did not see Carth's disturbed look as she repeated the Jedi Code in her mind again and again.

_"There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony. There is no death, there is the Force."  
_The mantra calmed the Jedi Knight and she sighed, shaking off her feelings as she looked on the situation through the Code. She needed to separate her emotions from her actions and she needed to look on rationally, with a clear mind and weighing the consequences and benefits of her actions. She started slightly when she realized that Tauryn had followed the Jedi Code, the slave girl had been terrified and she would have raised the alarm to their presence if she were captured. Likewise if she had followed them she would give them away or hinder their efforts and Kaera swallowed when she realized that Revan had made a very _Jedi_ decision. It chilled her slightly with its detachment but it was her way of life, the way she'd been taught since infancy and she reluctantly turned her back to the unconscious slave girl, concentrating on the more important matter of finding the Swoop Accelerator. No matter what she did, she knew she couldn't save everybody. She was old enough to know that life and more particularly war was dark and some of the decisions she had to make would haunt her. She couldn't simply ignore it but she had to do what was necessary.

Revan had no such emotional turmoil within his own mind as he passed the deactivated auto-turrets in the room leading to the unlocked lift door. He had made such decisions on a planetary scale since he'd left the Jedi Order and became first General and then Darth Revan and kept his focus on the big picture. He'd done more than he would have for most. He'd given the girl a weapon and a chance to escape. Ignoring the added guilt, Revan moved on with a calm and rational mind, keeping his focus on the mission at hand. Remorse could come later, recriminations could wait. They had an accelerator to find and a Jedi to save and he wasn't too concerned over his feelings or the slave's wellfare. The Vulkar security within the base was laughable.

A computer console yielded Revan with a view of the looped security camera feed of the swoop bike garage within the Black Vulkar base and he used a simple bypass on the console to see the live feed; seeing a line of swoop bikes and guards sitting within their rooms with bored and tired expressions as they played pazaak and sabaac with one another. A computer program was running in the background on one of the cameras, showing the steady temperature of the active swoop engines in the hangar area of the garage section. Revan felt Carth approaching behind him but ignored the Commander, using the security access from the keycard to deactivate the swoop engine coolant restraints, causing the engines to overheat. An alarm sounded within the base and the guards moved from their games to the swoop bikes, their expressions confused as they checked the consoles which showed the engines were fine while the alarm warned of an overload. One moved to check the engines by placing his hand against it and Revan smirked as the Vulkar cried out in pain as the overheated engine burnt his hand. Moments later a distant series of explosions could be heard reverberating along the corridors of the base as the engines overheated and exploded, killing and maiming the Vulkar guards.

"No more stealth."  
Carth muttered, moving from behind Revan to cover the garage as he cringed at the smell of burning flesh and the sight of bodies torn apart by the powerful explosions. Revan's gloved fingers danced across the console as he felt Mission and Zalbaar moving to stand behind Carth and help if needed. Mission squeaked at the scene of carnage while Zalbaar merely growled, not bothered by the sight but feeling the need for some violence therapy after his imprisonment at the hands of the Gammoreans. The Vulkars weren't very high on the Wookiee's list of respected organizations and he saw no problem with killing a few. Kaera was staring at Revan's back, cautiously moving towards him as she glanced around his shoulder, staring at the computer screen. Images of Vulkars choking on noxious fumes reached her eyes and she saw that Revan had bypassed the locks on the doors via the console, sealing the Vulkars in while channeling the ventilation of the toxic fumes of the exhaust ports into the small confines of the barracks. The man was wearing a slight smirk and she shuddered, wondering how he could find the deaths of so many amusing.

"Lets see how the slave is doing."  
Revan's voice muttered, silent and more to himself than Kaera. Kaera knew he knew she was watching and frowned, seeing that his smile when watching the deaths of the Vulkars had not reached his eyes. Reaching out through the Force, Kaera felt nothing from the man, that alone was enough to compel her to dig into his aura further, her concern growing when she found only a wall.

"Its not nice to poke around other people's minds."  
Revan's voice was quiet, only loud enough for Kaera to hear but she understood the tone well enough. She'd heard the exact tone from recordings of Darth Revan's voice during his reign as the Dark Lord of the Sith though her mind did not make the connection of how alike the voices were, merely the tone. It was a warning mixed with a challenge; a way of conveying that the owner knew exactly what you were trying to do and how to stop you. Kaera withdrew from her search, sparing Revan a quick glance and turning her eyes back to the computer screen when she saw only his cold glare and stony features. The image of the young slave appeared, one hand to the back of her neck as she looked around wildly while the other found the pistol. Revan flicked off the screen, moving away as he drew his pistol and Kaera sighed, following as she took the blaster rifle Carth offered her. She had no idea what to make of Tauryn Katarn. He was like an enigma, a contradiction to himself and she found it all a bit distressing and in no small way terrifying.

Breaking from cover, Revan moved with his pistol in hand, sweeping it across the charred bodies of the Vulkar guards while placing shots into the heads of those still living. Carth swept to the left, covering the former Sith Lord while Mission and Zalbaar moved forward slowly, looking straight ahead to where the wall on the right moved off to opened into a side corridor and a divider that cut off the view of yet another corridor directly ahead of them and to the left. Two Vulkar emerged from the left side-corridor and Mission froze for a split-second, surprised as the guards before Zalbaar opened up on the two with his repeating blaster rifle. The red energy bolts sprayed the Vulkars and the wall behind them and they both dropped to the ground, one still moving before Zalbaar growled, moving forward and shooting down at the Vulkar, point blank. The Wookiee turned to glare down the side corridor, raising his weapon and firing at a Vulkar that had been approaching to help his comrades. The Vulkar took four blaster bolts to the chest before he fell to the ground and Zalbaar sniffed the air, roaring a battlecry as he moved further, Mission following sedately behind him as she looked back to see Kaera watching the corridor behind the divider that separated the swoop garage from another section. The Jedi spared her a glance, raising a brow at Zalbaar's bloodlust before she snapped her attention back to the corridor behind the divider, cursing as three Vulkars appeared and one fell back, using the wall as cover while two advanced, their weapons drawn as she fired into the center of mass of one. A blue stun bolt struck the guard and he dropped like a rock while the second returned fire from his own blaster rifle, his set to kill.

"Not your day."  
Carth shouted to the Vulkar advancing on Kaera as he stepped into the gap between the divider and the corridor Mission Kaera and Zalbaar were in. The Vulkar had time to look towards Carth before the Telosian sprayed deadly blaster bolts into the Trandoshan with startling accuracy. The third Vulkar was so busy worrying about Kaera and Carth that he didn't spot Revan come around the other side of the divider until the Mandalorian had shot him. The Vulkar staggered, twisting away from Carth and Kaera as he spotted Revan and slid down the wall to the floor. His last sight was of the barrel of Revan's pistol flashing before he knew no more.

"Regroup."  
Carth ordered, falling into the role of Commander. Kaera spared Mission and Zalbaar a concerned glance, seeing that the two were moving back towards her before she turned back to Carth. Revan remained by his kill, his eyes narrowed as he glared down the shielded corridor. Two small circular objects stuck to the floor plating at the end of the corridor bore the brunt of his scrutiny and Revan made a mental note of them before cautiously moving to join Carth.

"That explosion was pretty loud. I think its safe to say they're gonna throw everything at us..."  
Carth glanced over his shoulder, keeping a pistol trained on the lift while his other checked a sealed doorway at the edge of the exposed garage hangar area.

"I sealed all the doors within the upper levels of the base and released a bunch of poisonous fumes into them. The air scrubbers should clean it out by the time we're done down here."  
Carth turned from his guarding of the lift door to stare at the younger man, surprise in his features. Kaera shifted uncomfortably, able to feel the echoes of those short and violent deaths through the Force and unable to meet Revan's cold stare. It seemed almost like a switch had been thrown, getting rid of the man's humanity and kindness and replacing it with a machine. She wondered briefly if it was because of the battleground situation or if it was truly who Tauryn Katarn was beneath his sarcastic and direct but otherwise colorful personality. He seemed overbearing, cold and calculating at that moment and she found it hard to reconcile the man who'd saved her life on the _Endar Spire_ with the man she was staring at. Unnerved and a bit apprehensive, Kaera followed the slightly older human, watching his movements carefully as she read his aura, careful not to draw attention to her actions. He'd felt her intrusion and while she knew it was wrong to use the Force purely for curiosity, she felt an undercurrent of danger, perhaps a Dark Jedi's presence affecting him from afar. It was almost as if the aura itself were muted, shielded from view while it shined around whatever was hiding it, giving her just a tantalizing glimpse of who the man truly was. Where before he had been confident, Kaera saw only certainty in his movements and she shivered slightly, a mixture of feelings bombarding her as she watched him.   
"Mines, careful."  
Revan stated, his tone was flat and emotionless as he separated his own feelings from the battle. He couldn't risk enjoying the fight or he might unconsciously draw on the Force, forgetting to shield his aura and that would be catastrophic if Malak or the Dark Jedi or even Kaera were watching. Mission moved down the hallway ahead of the group, kneeling beside the two mines as she pulled out a reflective strip from a pouch strapped to her left leg. The Twi'lek teen slid the strip carefully under the mine, her hands working on the small switches as she was careful to keep her movements timed with the basic synchronization of the mine's scanners. If she moved when the scanner was on her it would detonate the mine and she had plenty of experience reading the sensor sweeps. It was one of her many talents and the two mines were deactivated and added to her own personal supply within a minute. Revan stepped around Mission, spotting two doors to the left of the corridor and feeling the Force faintly acknowledging that his search was in that direction. Pausing only to make sure he hadn't given himself away, Revan spared a glance the other direction, motioning to Mission.

"Put those minds in front of those two doors."  
Mission nodded while Zalbaar moved to watch his friend's back. Carth kept a guard of the rear in case any Vulkars had survived and were searching for them while Kaera was trying to calm her nerves. Something about Tauryn was making her skin crawl, the way he carried himself, the way he acted during battle. She had seen him act before with brutality or grim humor while fighting but never like this. With a calculating gaze, Revan watched Mission set the mines and move away before he moved to the two doors to the left of the corridor's opening. Opening one, Revan kept his pistol at the ready, prepared to shoot if needed. The room was clear, its function acting only as a short hallway to another set of doors and Revan approached, motioning for Mission and Zalbaar to remain in the hallway while Carth and Kaera flanked him to his left and right. Activating the door's motion sensors the three humans stepped in, spotting a group of Black Vulkars. Two of the Vulkars were Twi'lek with green skin while the other two Vulkar were a Rodian and a Trandoshan. Instead of going for their weapons the Vulkars merely tensed, one of the Twi'leks, the male advanced on Revan with a smile.

"You must be here for the Swoop Accelerator. I'm impressed with your ability to infiltrate out base so far but we've been expecting Gadon to send some of his cronies... but wait... you are not wearing the colors of the Hidden Beks..."  
Revan tilted his head, a curious and slightly greedy expression crossing his face as he smirked. The Vulkar in front of him was smart enough to know they were threat and wanted to make a deal.   
"I'm not one of the Bek's lapdogs."  
Revan stated evenly, his eyes sweeping the four Vulkars while Kaera lowered her blaster rifle, tensing as she prepared to leap into the fray if their little negotiations would go badly. Carth merely kept a stony glare fixed on the Vulkars, his weapons at the ready but not aimed at any of them. The Twi'lek grinned smugly at Revan, his eyes confident in his and his men's abilities and Revan kept an unwavering gaze locked on the Twi'lek's eyes for any sign of action.

"Well then... I think we might be able to work out an agreement... What was it the Beks promised you? We can double it."  
The thought of two Bastila Shans didn't particularily appeal to Revan, though his mind did wander with the possibilities before dismissing them. Revan could feel Carth's suspicion and Kaera's subtle attempts to scan his aura and glanced between his four opponents, working out which ones Carth and Kaera would be more likely to attack before he smiled, relaxing his stance completely as he arrogantly stepped forward, ignoring the shock from Carth and Kaera and the smug look on the Twi'lek's face.

"They promised me I could kill you."  
Revan whispered, just loud enough for the Twi'lek to hear. The Twi'lek's smug expression turned to a shocked look before it twisted into an angry glare and he opened his mouth to order his comrades to attack before Carth beat them to it, gunning down the Rodian and Trandoshan guards while the female Twi'lek dove for cover. Too late as Kaera moved forward in a blur, her curved Echani blade ending the alien woman's life. Revan was close enough to the Twi'lek to knock aside the blaster pistol that rose to shoot him. With the grace of a lifetime of training, Revan stepped forward in a quick half-lunge, lifting and driving his elbow into the Twi'lek's throat with bone jarring force before taking a quick step back. The blow was fatal and crushed the alien's throat inward, obstructing his air passageways. Explosions from the mines Mission had planted alerted Mission and Zalbaar to more danger and the two turned to deal with the threat from behind while Revan sidestepped the bodies of the Vulkars, moving through a group of mines and lifting up the Swoop Accelerator from where it sat on the left end of the room. Turning and avoiding the mines that were carefully placed on the floor, Revan rejoined Kaera and Carth, leaving the still choking Twi'lek's final view of his killer his backside as he walked away without a backwards glance. A blaster discharged and the Twi'lek knew nothing more as Carth lowered his smoking pistol, following Revan while Kaera lingered behind, a bit pale from the brutality of it all.

Four Black Vulkar staggered around in a daze from where the mines had exploded and Revan could see Mission moving ahead of him flanked by Zalbaar as the Wookiee opened up on the gang members. The four Vulkars fell prey to Zalbaar's repeating blaster and Mission checked the ramp leading back up to the garage before moving across the opening to where the bodies lay. The Twi'lek's form vanished from sight as she activated her stealth field generator and she reappeared moments later, giving Revan and the others a thumbs-up to show the rooms were clear. Revan, knowing Carth was the better and faster shot with his blasters opted to carry the Swoop Accelerator as they made their way back to the lift leading to the upper section of the Vulkar base.

"You bastard!"

Revan rose a brow at the young slave girl he had knocked out, his face expressionless as he studied the angry woman pointing a blaster at him. She was lucky Carth hadn't shot her on sight and Kaera seemed to flinch when she spotted the confused and frightened slave.

"You're making a lot of noise."  
Revan stated in a flat tone, his eyes scanning the area behind the young woman before he locked gazes with her, making certain she could read exactly what his eyes were conveying.

"If you don't shut up, calm down and point that in a more useful direction I am going to kill you."  
Carth and Mission started at Revan's threat, Kaera merely frowning while the slave woman shivered and dropped the weapon, her eyes wide.

"Good girl. You want to live, follow us out of here."

Without another word, Revan moved to the girl, depositing the Swoop Accelerator in her arms and taking the pistol, his movement was so fast that she could hardly open her mouth to protest. Deciding a silent retaliation would be more appropriate since she wanted to be free from the Vulkars the slave girl merely scowled and cast a hateful glare at Revan's back as the former Sith Lord moved to the door adjacent to the lift they had taken from the back entrance.

"Why don't we just use the back way out?"  
Carth suggested, earning the Republic soldier a hopeful look from the slave girl. Kaera narrowed her eyes as she studied Revan's body language, seeing that he was succumbing to stress as his shoulders shook slightly. She couldn't blame him for being on edge if he had a conscience and the Jedi waited patiently, her head tilting slightly to the side as she watched Revan open a door without so much as a word and fire a blast from the confiscated pistol into the face of a startled Vulkar. His mannerisms were slipping into a Mandalorian warrior's reckless behavior when they were angry and she could feel the man's annoyance and anger coiling within him like a serpent preparing to strike.

"Rakgoul would be attracted by the scent of the kill. I think these idiots are easier to kill, personally. I also took the liberty of poisoning most of the base so..."

Carth, surprised by the younger man's clipped tone merely stayed silent, holstering one of his pistols to briefly rest a reassuring hand on the slave girl's shoulder. The girl looked over to him and offered a small smile, the kind gesture ending when Revan opened the door to the adjacent hallway in front of them. The floor was littered with Black Vulkar bodies and the smell of toxic exhaust was still heavy in the air. Revan paid it no mind, moving swiftly through the open section of the base's main entrance and moving up against the sealed entrance of the base. Sliding on his headset again, Revan checked the heat signatures on the other side of the door before holding up two fingers to the others, lowering one and pointing to the left side before pointing to the right side of the door. Carth nodded while Revan motioned Mission over to the console and took up a position parallel to Carth on the left side of the door. Mission hit the console and a gust of slightly more breathable air hit them as the front entrance opened.

"What-"

Carth's twin pistols opened up on the Vulkar guard in front of him while Revan's shot a single point blank shot into the side of the face of the Twi'lek Vulkar guard that turned to see who was coming out of their base. Remaining still for a moment, Revan listened to the far-off sounds of the Lower City before he glanced to Carth and the two soldiers nodded to one another. Revan turned to the slave girl, taking the engine from her hands and returning the pistol to the girl before he laid the remaining of his credit chips, close to four hundred in her hands and gave her a simple nod. The girl opened and closed her mouth, her brow furrowing before she scurried off, heading to the lift to the Upper City. Kaera noticed the way Revan's shoulders raised and lowered and frowned, her eyes moving to meet Carth's and then Mission's before she moved to catch up with the Mandalorian.

"Tauryn..."  
Revan glanced over his shoulder at the Jedi, his stony features making it clear he did not have any invested interest in discussing his actions. He knew a slave girl with no money wouldn't stand much of a chance on the streets alone and four hundred credits was enough, if the girl was smart about how she spent it to start a new lift. He'd certainly done more with less and his sympathy and good will had limits.

"Tauryn you need to talk about-"  
Revan stopped, gesturing for Zalbaar to take the Swoop Accelerator and simply ignored the Wookiee's grumbling. Carth cast the younger man a curious look laced with a bit of concern which Revan ignored.

"Zalbaar get that to the Hidden Beks. Carth I want you and Mission to go with him to make sure it gets there. I have a few things I have to take care of before I meet you there. Kaera, would you mind joining me?"  
Kaera simply nodded, waving off Carth's concerned and slightly suspicious look before she sighed and began collecting herself. When the others were out of sight the young woman turned to Revan with a disapproving but slightly understanding glare. The end result was more a look of mild confusion and Revan dug into his cloak's pockets, pulling out the black metal case that contained the Rakgoul serum he had taken from the dead Sith.

"What you did back there in the base to that girl was a very disturbing and morally corrupted thing. She could have been captured and tortured for how you- how you posed the scene... Your actions could very well be considered criminal."  
Revan replaced the case into his cloak's pocket, crossing his hands behind him at the small of his back, just next to the base of his armor. The former Sith Lord's thumb brushed against the Sith lightsaber resting, hidden against the base of the armored breastplate and he studied Kaera, considering slicing her head off for trying to talk down to him from her pedestal.

"I do admit... however much I might- I might dislike your methods that you have accomplished the main goal of our mission up until this point. I am very disturbed, however that you knew I was scanning your mind... I- might I ask how you-"  
Revan cut Kaera off with a mechanical and completely truthful answer, though it shrouded a greater truth behind its wording.

"I gave you all my background. My Clan was nearly wiped out and I was taken by a Jedi to the Republic just before my teens. While finding someone willing to take me on, the Jedi found that I was relatively strong in the Force and gave me a few lessons on control. Just the basics while I sought a new Clan... a new family if you will. I moved on to other teachers and learned to be a soldier though I never forgot the old woman... the Jedi's lessons. As I recall a Jedi does not exploit their power to invade the minds of others unless necessary. Would you care to explain that?"  
Revan's hands, unseen beneath his cloak began moving upwards, curving around the lightsaber's hilt. The Force remained muted while Revan kept his aura suppressed and he studied the Jedi carefully, relying on his more basic senses to understand her actions. He could see she was unnerved and smell that she was perspiring. Her hands shook in a barely perceptible tremor and Revan knew she was wary of him, nervous even.

"I- I admit I was at fault with my actions, Tauryn and I apologize but you were acting very strangely and- and your aura. Your aura was muddled, muted as if- as if something were effecting you, bearing down on you from afar to twist what you were within... I- I feared perhaps that a Dark Jedi was able to gain control or dominance of your thoughts..."  
Revan saw the Jedi's own look of confusion at her words. She spoke them not as an explanation, but almost as an afterthought and the former Sith Lord smirked mentally at the irony. Plastering a grimace on his face, Revan cleared his throat, absently rubbing his stomach as he let out a fairly impressive embarrassed laugh. Kaera's entire body stiffened and she gave the slightly older human a suspicious look, his smile completely out of place for the circumstances.

"Sorry... I was having a bit of indigestion from the local food. It was kinda making me angry and- and a bit moody I guess. I know warriors aren't supposed to let something like a stomach ache get to them but... I didn't feel like another Dark Jedi was in my mind but why don't you check just to be on the safe side?"  
Kaera's body was rigid, her eyes widened slightly in an incredulous mask before she huffed on a half-laugh and shook her head, blinking as she looked into Tauryn's face, reaching carefully into the Force and tracing the tendrils around his muted aura inward. The only thing effecting Tauryn's mood was his own body and Kaera shook her head at how ridiculous it all was.   
"I- I... You- You had indigestion?"  
Revan's nervous smile turned to a scowl as he glared at Kaera.

"Yes."  
His voice was a bit miffed but there was an undercurrent of humor and the Jedi found herself laughing at the Mandalorian's annoyed expression. She supposed she could understand in some ways his attitude if he were feeling sick to his stomach. No doubt the sight of the Rancor's innards did little to help him and Kaera covered her mouth with her hand, stifling her laughter as Revan sighed, shaking his head and turning to walk away as he muttered under his breath, just loud enough for the Jedi to hear.

"Lets find a fresher before we do anything else."  
Kaera Nurr abandoned her efforts to stifle her laughter and Revan's soon joined hers as the two humans worked their way to Taris' Upper City, stopping quickly by their apartment where Revan made a big show of using the fresher before he added a few credits to his empty pockets from their stash and moved on to have a talk with a doctor. Resting his palm against the Rakgoul serum, Revan smirked as he glanced at Kaera.

"I hear there's a Hutt willing to pay some credits for Rakgoul serum. I just happen to have two vials... What say we sell one to the Hutt and give the other to Doctor Zelka, agreed?"  
Filing away Tauryn's behavior in the Vulkar base for later reflection, Kaera cast the man an amused smile, offering him her arm as she nodded. Revan did a ridiculous bow saved for Senate parties and royal courts as he looped his own arm through the Jedi's and they walked away from the apartment. Kaera spared the young man an appraising look as she noted his personality change when the threat of battle had eased. She wasn't naive enough to believe his explanation completely but she knew the decision to leave the girl to take the blame had bothered him. Not enough to try something else but enough to dim his eyes just a little.

AN: Crap that was the longest single chapter I've written... I hope you all like the darker Revan I wrote in. I wanted to convey the effects and not just his actions which is why I went into so much detail with Kaera's view of him... Hope it worked like I wanted it to...


	14. Chapter 13: The Race

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Chapter 13: The Race

It had been a week since the raid on the Black Vulkar base and Carth Onasi, Kaera Nurr, Mission Vao, Zalbaar and Revan were wasting away the time in the Hidden Bek base. Deciding it would be prudent for Mission to have some hand-to-hand combat training, Revan and Carth began work on showing the Twi'lek their knowledge in Mandalorian and Echani martial arts forms. The two soldiers decided to keep it basic by teaching only defensive moves to the young woman. Since the Twi'lek was so small Carth spent most of the time teaching her the Echani form which dealt more with grace than brute force while Revan entertained himself by merely doing physical exercises to keep his own strength at least marginally as well as it had been before; during his tenure as the Dark Lord. Due to retaliatory strikes by the Vulkars the small group had taken refuge within the Hidden Bek base behind the defenses of the swoop gang. Revan wasn't too worried but being able to relax and make use of the facility's equipment was advantageous. Plus he liked the opportunity to examine the Swoop Accelerator.

"I think it would be wiser if I were to race in your stead, Tauryn. I know you have fast reflexes and have experience but I am a Jedi."  
Kaera stated to Revan as he and Carth were playing a game of pazaak. Carth rolled his eyes while Revan merely stared blankly at the Jedi, dead-panning.

"Yes and Jedi never make mistakes."  
Revan's blank expression turned to a smirk as Kaera frowned at him. Jedi were just as fallible as any other sentients but their training often times granted them better perspective. At least in their opinions. Revan remained completely unimpressed with the Jedi's collective wisdom.

"That is besides the point. Through the Force I can see things before they happen, should the dangers of the engine's modification become tangible I can avert any... tragedy if it overloads."  
Revan set his side-deck of pazaak cards down, turning his attention to Kaera. The former Sith Lord eyed the Jedi warily a moment before speaking.

"I have an intricate knowledge of the Swoop Accelerator's functions and while I may not be able to _sense_ the problem like you can, I can read a bloody display and know damn well when something isn't right. I spent the first decade of my life training to ride a Basilisk War Droid through atmosphere and hostile fire into enemy territory. I'm not talking about the Clover Basilisks. I'm talking about the Scarab-design; the ones where it was just the rider, their armor and the Basilisk."  
Kaera rose a brow, not certain what Revan was referring to while Carth grimaced at the memory of Mandalorians on Basilisk War Droids. The newer models, nicknamed Clovers for their appearance were designed to carry four-man shock squads of Mandalorian warriors due to their increasing losses during the war of their most skilled riders. The new Basilisks were more like heavily armored and armed landing craft than the older Mandalorian assault craft and could operate within atmospheres and in space as heavy assault fighters and bombers. The older Scarab Basilisks had limited uses in space but could still function within interplanetary systems if the rider was wearing armor with environmental seals. The primary use of the Scarab-Basilisk was simply a heavy assault landing craft for a single skilled Mandalorian warrior, almost like an overpowered swoop bike mixed with a Republic heavy assault tank. A limited artificial intelligence made the older Basilisks much more deadly than their replacements and the craft seemed to obey the movements of its riders, compensating for the rider's shifting as needed, giving the craft a grace that few machines could capture while also mixing it with the brute strength and firepower that made Mandalorians infamous. The deadly assault craft were designed by the dragon-like Basiliskans, renamed the Lagartoz War Dragons whom the Mandalorians conquered and enslaved four decades before. Carth Onasi shuddered as he recalled the Mandalorians that went into battle atop Lagartoz and Basilisks alike. The dragon-like sentients were more than capable of living up to the destructive power of their creations and their high intelligence and a strange loyalty to their masters and riders made them a deadly combination.

"You alright, Carth?"  
Revan asked, diverting Kaera's attention to the older soldier. The Jedi frowned at the pale features of the Telosian and laid a hand on his shoulder. Carth jumped slightly at the contact, lost in his memories of the Mandalorian wars and shook his head slowly, nodding to Revan's question.

"Yes... just remembering a battle where the Mandalorians were using all three Basilisks..."

Revan sat back in his chair, the game of pazaak and Kaera's arguments as to who would ride the in the swoop race set aside momentarily as the former Sith Lord recalled the only battles he'd seen where the Mandalorians had used all three types of Basilisks.

"Second Battle of Onderon and Dxun?"  
Carth nodded, remembering Onderonian Beast riders fighting off Mandalorian warriors on Basiliskans, Scarab and Clover War Droids and mounts while Republic and Jedi fighters tried to shoot them down and clear the way for the liberating armies of Revan and Malak's fleets. Onderon and Dxun had been victories in the end but costly ones at that, Dxun especially.

"You fought there?"  
Carth asked, his features torn between hostility and understanding. Revan nodded, choosing not to elaborate on which side he'd fought on. After giving Revan a hard stare, Carth decided to drop it, knowing he had no wish to relive the memories of the wars either. Tauryn Katarn's or Tauryn Bloodraven's, he wasn't quite sure who's statements; were cryptic as to his involvement in the Mandalorian War. He'd avoided speaking about it directly by making references to Cathar and the Republic Navy and while Carth had read the man's records he was still a bit suspicious as to the man joining the Republic Navy under a false name and as a member of a race that was an enemy of the Republic at the time.

"Don't think all Mandalorians wanted that war, Carth."  
Revan stated, sensing the Telosian's thoughts. Carth stiffened and frowned at his fellow soldier before he nodded his agreement silently. There was no point in blaming an entire race for the actions of its army but then, the Mandalorian race was pretty much one big army; some trained from birth to be warriors and others enslaved and conscripted into their ranks. The Telosian refused to think of how many Mandalorian slaves they'd killed in the war, especially over Malachor V. All he wanted to think about was how the war was over, in the past with the enemy defeated. That was a problem, though as the heroes of that war were at the head of the new enemy attacking them.

"Well, if you were any good on a Basilisk I'd say you should go, Tauryn."  
Kaera opened her mouth to argue but saw the hard look in Carth's eyes. The man was glaring silently at Tauryn and Kaera decided not to add fuel to the fire. If Carth vouched for Tauryn's prowess than who was she to argue the point for hours and hours on end if the man was stubborn enough to want the Mandalorian in the race. She was a Jedi but as Tauryn had so crudely put it, Jedi were not perfect and she had little experience riding anything beyond a speeder and if it saved an argument with Carth, all the better.

"Very well... While I feel I may be the better choice I have faith in your abilities, Tauryn and see no reason why we should argue this point if Carth feels you should race as well."  
Revan nodded, leaning back and motioning for Carth to rejoin the game of pazaak. The Commander sighed, rejoining the game and frowning in annoyance at his opponent's luck as he tried to get his thought off of the Mandalorian wars.

"I think it'd be safer if Kaera and I were stationed for backup. With that shield you looted from that Sith patrol the other day and your melee abilities I think you'd be the better choice. We don't want a lightsaber flashing around and drawing attention and while it would be the best choice we can't risk attracting more attention than is necessary. Tauryn is probably the best balanced fighter melee and ranged-wise between us all. I may be the better marksman and Kaera the better swordsman- er woman but I get the feeling we're gonna need a bit of both and I'll admit Tauryn is a Hell of a lot better with a blade than me..."  
Kaera nodded her agreement while Revan wisely chose to remain silent about his prowess with a blade. He had his doubts as to Kaera's skill with a melee blade and while he knew all Jedi were experts with lightsabers, swords were different things entirely and he'd had to train for months just to get himself to compensate for the weight in the blade and the off-center counterweight that lightsabers did not use. Wondering absently if Kaera was good with a lightsaber or not, Revan missed Carth's move and frowned when he saw the Telosian had scored a twenty and that he was only at seventeen. Drawing the next card, Revan cursed as he drew a ten and raised his set to twenty-seven. Checking his sidedeck, Revan sighed, conceding the match to Carth while he collected his cards and reshuffled for a new round.

"I suppose Tauryn is the better balanced of all three of us but... I assume the Vulkars know by now Bastila was a Jedi, who is to say they haven't... they haven't replaced her with another slave?"  
Mission spoke up from where she was lying on a nearby cot, absently twirling a small lockpick in her hand.   
"They submit a visual and medical report to show the slave hasn't been... exploited. Its updated daily along with any other prizes and their conditions. Everyone takes the races seriously down here and... well if Bastila is a Jedi that means she's likely not been... well that she's a virgin and _that_ is going to be a huge deal for the race. The Beks had to meet the Vulkar's bet and since they don't use slaves... well lets just say I'm surprised they can afford to keep the lights on."  
Carth, Revan and Kaera all stared at the Twi'lek silently before Revan shrugged, dealing Kaera into the hand since she seemed to be hovering over them. Kaera sighed, seating herself beside the other two humans and accepting Mission's sidedeck since Carth and Revan weren't sharing.   
"So... it must be hard being a Jedi... No family, no husband..."  
Carth snickered, unable to finish his lame pick-up line and Kaera rolled her eyes in disgust at the man, accepting his deviation from the argument and foul mood that had been simmering beneath his calm exterior. Revan chuckled, shaking his head as the three humans played a set of pazaak, Kaera winning due to her Jedi abilities.

"You cheated."  
Revan accused while Carth collected his cards, scowling and giving the Jedi a mock-glare. Kaera smiled coyly and gave the two men an innocent look before giggling at the indignation on Carth's face. She noted that Tauryn's expression was amused but his eyes seemed empty of mirth and colder than the attitude he projected. Reaching out a small tendril through the Force, Kaera watched with slightly narrowed eyes as the Mandalorian's shoulders stiffened in a barely noticeable tell before he relaxed, his face carefully schooled and his emotions seemingly projected. His eyes gave away that he had any knowledge in the Force and Kaera wondered just who the Jedi Knight was that had rescued the Mandalorian and obviously taught him more than a few cheap parlor tricks in the Force. His aura seemed overpowering despite its hidden depth and she briefly entertained Carth's delusions that the man was a Sith spy before she shook off the thought. Sith, regardless of how well trained lacked control and patience and all but the most driven of Sith Masters would project the kind of power she could see reflected in the man's aura.

_"Perhaps he was powerful enough to have an instinctual perception of the Force and the Master taught him enough for him to safely be able to mix with the general population... Surely a man with such raw power wouldn't have escaped the notice of Revan and Malak's Sith unless he wanted to remain hidden. I doubt the man has any loyalties to tie him down... He has darkness but also kindness within him... a capacity for both light and dark..."  
_Seeing that another game of pazaak had started, Kaera set aside her musings for another time. Force-willing she would have a reliable second opinion the following day with Bastila. She'd seen Tauryn make enough mistakes to believe that he was simply a powerful but overlooked Force sensitive and any nefarious purposes the man would have had were simply unfounded as he could very well have done everything they had on his own without their continued presence. Setting aside her suspicions and Carth-like thoughts, Kaera decided to relax in the company of the two men, amused at the friendly banter that replaced the bitter bickering she normally saw between the two.

Revan was the first of the five companions to awaken the next day and he donned his armor in an almost ritualistic fashion, spending nearly an hour making certain each and every flaw of the design was accounted for and that any and all restrictions to his movements were dealt with. Clean and nearly buzzing with suppressed energy, Revan ate a healthy and rejuvenating breakfast with Kaera, the only one to have awakened as early as he and waited for Carth to show before offering his thoughts on their plan for the swoop race.

"I was thinking about Bastila, if she's going to be in any condition to fight or be moved or even if she's going to be conscious..."  
Revan had spent most of the night before subtly probing the bond Bastila had formed with him by saving his life half a year before and the confusion and chaos he sensed were enough to confirm his suspicions that she was not going to be much help in the fight if the Vulkars made a big show of turning her over to the winner, which would most definitely be him.

"If they know Bastila is a Jedi she is likely being heavily sedated and... well I'm going to need a way out of there. I think I can use the swoop bike for a quick getaway if the Vulkars don't honor their deal during the race which I am most certain will be the case."  
Kaera and Carth nodded their agreement, Carth with a pensive look while Kaera remained neutral in her opinions. Revan stared at Kaera for a long time, considering the advantages to letting the Jedi race in his stead before shaking off the idea. He was more of a hands-on kind of man. He liked to be the one at the controls of the fighter, liked to be the one at the front lines so he could see what the troops saw and know what needed to be done. He'd always led by example, living by the theory that you didn't tell someone to do something you weren't prepared to do yourself and some of his greatest and most horrid acts were done with that theory. He knew his soldiers would lose faith in him if he didn't go _squatting_ in the trenches as Malak had so eloquently put it during the Second Battle of Taris. Shaking off the memories, Revan found Carth and Kaera staring at him expectantly and pushed aside his troubled thoughts to be reflected upon at a more appropriate time. Guilt and regrets were a waste of time and while he didn't particularly enjoy some of the things he'd done, he knew what he was doing as the Dark Lord and never took his eyes off his goal, his final solution for the threats to the Republic.

"I want the rest of you heavily armed with blaster rifles... and with a transport that can fit all six of us when I come back with Bastila. I'll keep the channel on our comms open and you'll probably hear me yelling a lot and probably cussing."  
Carth chuckled while Kaera smiled faintly. Revan finished his drink, setting it on the tray of food he'd finished before speaking and stood, stretching while he adjusted the wrist-mounted shield generator he'd gotten while scouting the Undercity two days before. The shield wasn't anything special but it was better than nothing and Revan wasn't about to let a blasterbolt take him down. Knowing he'd be stuck with the others until they found a safe way off of Taris, Revan allowed his thoughts to remain on the present, keeping his senses attuned to those of the Dark Jedi that were randomly searching Taris' cityscape for any Force signatures. Hopefully if Bastila became conscious or aware during the rescue she wouldn't draw too heavily on the Force or there would be a problem. The problem being Malak with a huge fleet of planet-killing Sith Interdictors and little patience. The mental image of Malak behind a turboblaster, his finger tapping impatiently on the firing trigger as it pointed at Taris crossed Revan's mind and he stepped away from Carth and Kaera, chuckling darkly at the thought. Malak was so predictable... well up until he'd betrayed him. Feeling the humor drain away as he reflected on his friend, Revan sighed, not sure if he were angry or sad when he thought of Malak. They'd been best friends, brothers in everything but blood and it had cut him deeply that they grew apart after the Mandalorian Wars. Even though it was completely his own fault.

Carth and Kaera continued eating breakfast and working out a rough strategy for retrieving Tauryn and Bastila if a conflict were to occur. Kaera agreed with Tauryn's reasoning and by the time a bleary-eyed Mission and a ruffled Zalbaar joined the Jedi and Commander they had already convinced Gadon Thek to give them an air speeder with enough room for six passengers. Gadon had asked no questions after hearing about what had happened in the Black Vulkar base and his second in command, Zaedra was even civil with them when she led them to the speeder. Revan went separately, taking the modified swoop bike to the base as he ran a shakedown of its accelerator. Gunning the engine to full throttle as he passed through the transit lanes in Taris' Lower City, Revan watched carefully as the temperature display rose to near critical levels before he cut the accelerator, gliding on the swoop's repulsors as it passed the relatively light traffic of Taris' Lower City with ease. Reaching the race tracks, Revan made certain he hadn't lost any of his weapons or equipment before bringing the swoop bike into the loading hangar for the Swoop Bike Championships.

_"Well they seem cheery."  
_Revan mused to himself, moving cautiously between the Black Vulkar riders that glared at him as he passed. They'd likely come across the some witness to their base's destruction or managed to get a workable image from him through their security cameras and Revan merely smirked at them, his eyes flashing a warning of his intent. Few would return his stare and he knew they'd likely seen a recording of him in action. Having enough of intimidation, Revan moved to enter his swoop bike, making sure he kept the key to the modified bike securely in hand as he registered his vehicle and himself. Spotting a slave cage, Revan's hand tightened on his key, his eyes flashing with a hint of his true power as he spotted Bastila Shan.

Bastila was clad in a skimpy slave outfit of form-fitting leather and likely some type of synthesized silk. A bodice made of black leather showed off the Jedi's ample cleavage while her legs were covered in a skin-tight black silk netting that ended in knee-high black boots. Bastila's hands and forearms were covered in smooth leather gloved gauntlets and Revan felt the swoop key in his hand digging through his glove. Lightening his grasp, Revan swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat at the sight of the Jedi and turned away once he noticed the neural disruptor on her neck. He wasn't one to take advantage and he refused to get an eyeful of the scantily clad Jedi without her full permission, though it was a nice view. The very thought of what would await her should he lose the race sickened him to his very core and the former Sith Lord felt the comfortable and reassuring weight of the lightsaber hidden at the base of his back as he seriously pondered the merits of killing everyone involved in a rage. Revan despised slavery, the memory of rescuing a young Cathar girl on the very same world years before who had been similarly dressed and much younger was forever burned into Revan's mind and the former Sith Lord's blood boil as he ignored the comments the other racers were making towards the bound and at the moment mindless prisoner.

_"There is no honor in this."_

Revan could not keep the sneer of disgust from his face as he waited for the race to begin. Keeping his attention focused on the other riders, Revan felt a subtle pull in the Force along the bond he shared with Bastila. Surprised, the former Sith Lord spared a glance towards the Padawan, seeing that she was fighting through the effects of the neural disruptor by using the bond the Force had created between them. Likely his close proximity to her gave the bond a much more vibrant clarity through the Force, allowing her to grab the lifeline it offered. Revan caught himself before he pulled his lightsaber and murdered a nearby Vulkar gang member, his hands shaking with the effort of restraining his rage.

_"Soon... Soon they will pay."_

Though she was an enemy, Revan felt indebted to Bastila. She had saved his life, given him a new lease on life if you will and while he was down an empire he was still his own man, still free to make his own decisions. She had saved his life and he had never enjoyed seeing his enemies suffer or be humiliated. He preferred his enemies dead or converted and Bastila Shan was not entirely an enemy in his eyes. If nothing else she was someone he owed a significant debt of honor to and his Mandalorian blood boiled with rage as he forced himself to remain calm, focusing his attention on the threat of the Vulkar riders. Sensing that Bastila was breaking into consciousness, Revan released one of his mental shields, allowing the Padawan to probe his thoughts and see through his eyes.

Bastila Shan's first coherent thought in nearly two weeks since taking an escape pod from the _Endar Spire_ were of controlled rage and absolute revulsion that was not her own. The Padawan's eyes refused to focus due to the effects of the neural disruptor and something, a tremor in the Force warned her to be still. Obeying the warning, Bastila tentatively reached out to touch the lifeline she'd taken hold of to pull herself out of her chaotic and confusing thoughts to find the focused clarity of anger from what had been Darth Revan. Shivering slightly in fear and the cold sensation that ran up her spine starting from the pit of her stomach when she thought of Revan, Bastila concentrated on the bond, making sure to separate her mind from her body and allowing her body to continue its performance of a dazed and restrained prisoner. She could practically see her surroundings through Revan's eyes and she found her strength returning to her through the Force, though something warned her to restrain herself and that it wasn't the time. With controlled patience born from a lifetime of training, Bastila took stock of her situation and mentally scowled.

_"This... this is revolting! How dare they try to sell me off as a slave! As if I any of these- these vile slavers could ever keep me a prisoner. I shall make a point of this once I can escape... What the devil is Revan doing now, how- why..."  
_Bastila could feel the Force suppression shield Revan was actively using, the fear within her growing exponentially as she fought to control her emotions as they slipped through the effects of the neural disruptor. Revan was actively using the Force, not unconsciously and he had no training whatsoever. According to the Jedi Masters on Dantooine his mind was too badly damaged for him to be able to recover his identity and the Padawan found herself terrified by what that would mean.

_"It is impossible for anyone untrained to suppress their powers in that way... I- I can only see it because I am bonded to him... By the Force this is the worst thing that could possibly happen. He- his anger... is- is it directed at me?"  
_Bastila mentally swallowed, controlling the shivering in her body as she focused on her situation. It was strange, almost absurd that she could see through Revan's eyes, through Revan's senses but she followed her lifeline, finding the anger was focused and not at her. With a mental sigh of relief, Bastila focused on Revan's senses, shocked at the clarity with which his senses perceived the universe. Mentally filing away the information, Bastila came across the dozens of mental shields and false projections the deposed Sith Lord was using and she wondered how the man could consciously do so many tasks at once while still being able to do anything demanded of him from walking, eating and sleeping to running, fighting and driving a craft. Feeling her hold of reality slipping, Bastila moved past those thoughts and focused on the more primal part of Revan's mind.

_"Well... this is... terrifying."  
_Bastila decided to herself, sensing a burning desire within the former Sith Lord to kill and destroy and maim and do all sorts of dreadful things. It was a small comfort that he had such fates directed at those who had enslaved her but Bastila had her doubts as to Revan's rage simply stopping there. Peering through Revan's mind and hoping he didn't sense her intrusion, Bastila found that she could not dig completely through the former Sith Lord's formidable mental shields, especially in her current state of mind.

_"Blast... what is his purpose... I- he seems to be hiding, biding his time but for what? And why is he so concerned for my well-being?"  
_Revan could sense Bastila's curious probes through his mind and frowned, alarmed by the Padawan's ability to pass through several of his mental shields. Finding he couldn't force the Padawan out without drawing Malak's attention, Revan forced himself to relax, feeling Bastila withdrawing slowly and wondering how much she'd learned because of the bond that had kept him alive when he should have died.

_"This could prove very troublesome..."  
_Revan muttered to himself, focusing on the threats around him for his and Bastila's benefit. If he didn't have to disguise his abilities and could use a lightsaber, Revan had little doubt that he would annihilate the opposition. Since he was going for subtle, Revan lowered his hand to his belt where a powerful plasma grenade rested and he smirked as he thought of throwing it into the Black Vulkar gang leader's face. Revan spent several long minutes fantasizing about the many ways he would kill Brejik before he was called to race his swoop. Feeling the subtle pull on his mind return, Revan decided enough was enough and focused along the bond with Bastila, channeling a small amount of Force energy into the neural disruptor and wrapping invisible fingers around the mechanism before he made a small pinching gesture with his hand and spoke into Bastila's mind. The neural disruptor hissed quietly before dying.

_"I know you're there, Bastila Shan. Keep the act up until the race is finished. There should be a fairly large distraction with the victory... I will win I assure you, Bastila. Be certain to keep your guard up... I find these beings distasteful. Are you alright?"  
_Bastila nearly jumped out of her skin with the voice speaking into her mind. Resisting the urge, Bastila calmed herself, none of the swoop riders noticing that her body had grown eerily still.

_"What- why are you willing to help me? Do you intend to use me as some pawn or take me as a slave because I will have you know I have no intention of-"  
_Revan cut off Bastila's telepathic rant as he climbed onto his swoop bike, starting the engine and moving it slowly to the race track. All eyes were on him and he kept his senses attuned to any threats should a Vulkar take a shot at him. Sensing intent but not action, Revan gunned the engine of the swoop, responding to Bastila's buzzing and cultured voice in his mind.

_"Rest assured, Padawan Shan that I have no invested interest in your death. I seek to convert you to my beliefs but I digress the situation of the galaxy has changed somewhat since I was in a position of any significant power. It appears your well-being is in the scope of my own interests and I find myself indebted to you for saving my life on the bridge of my flagship."  
_Revan felt a sense of exhilaration as the flag waved and he hit the swoop accelerator, his swoop bike shooting forward in a blur as he navigated effortlessly around the obstacles. Relying on his eyes rather than the Force, Revan made use of the boosters as he cycled the cooling unit on the engine when it began overheating. Bastila seemed to sense he was distracted and withdrew slightly from his mind, her thoughts cluttered with the Jedi Council's explanation of Revan's demise. They had told her he was brain dead, that his mind was all but destroyed and that he could never become what he was again but she could sense clearly the very presence of Darth Revan behind the intricate mental shields the bond allowed her to penetrate and she felt beyond the fear of the danger she was in; confusion and anger towards the actions of the Jedi Council.

_"They- they told me he was clinically brain dead... Masters, my Jedi Masters lied to me! No... no there must be some mistake, surely they wouldn't... surely they wouldn't try to destroy his mind, they wouldn't..."_

Bastila realized with horror that she had relayed her thoughts to Revan. The link between their minds was silent for several precious moments that Bastila used to try to regain her control by chanting the Jedi Code to herself before Revan finished his circuit through the swoop track and parked his swoop bike back in the hangar, removing its key and moving to the screens to observe the other racers. Several riders came to threaten him while others congratulated him and he accepted their behavior with indifference, mulling over his response to Bastila's slip.

_"They lied, Padawan Shan. They tried to restrain my mind, to strip me away. The Force preserved me somehow and I was able to return, to break back through the restraints and the false memories... I suppose if you want to place the blame I left them little choice but the Jedi Order and the Council are not so infallible as they would have you believe."  
_Wanting to argue the merits of the Council but having evidence to the contrary speaking directly to her, Bastila sighed mentally, her thoughts resting on the lies the Council members and the Healers in charge of Revan had told her. She found their actions a complete contradiction to both the Jedi Order and the practice of medicine. Revolted by the actions of the Council, Bastila shivered as she realized she was cold. Focusing her blurry eyes, Bastila started when she realized she was clad in a skimpy and ridiculously impractical outfit. The Padawan's cheeks flushed slightly as she came back to the physical world, seeing that Revan under the name of his false identity had won the face, a Duro was congratulating the former Sith Lord and Bastila swallowed the nausea that rose within her as she realized fully what they had planned for her. Checking her body through the Force, Bastila sighed in relief when she found herself intact and free of any... violations. Aside from being clothed by foreign hands and being kept in a cage like some rabid animal, Feeling righteous fury rise within her, Bastila collected the Force around her, focusing it into her hands as she focused her gray eyes on the scene unfolding before her.

_"Oh drat, looks as thought I'm going to have to kill some of these bastards."  
_Revan felt absolutely no remorse for that trail of logic and he could sense Bastila preparing for her escape. Brejik, the leader of the Black Vulkar gang had accused him of cheating and refused to hand over Bastila and the argument was escalating to involve the Hidden Bek riders and the race's organizers. Revan lowered his right hand to his left vambrace, a flicker of blue energy and a humming as his body was jolted with a static charge announced his shield's activation.

"You old fool! Your traditions mean nothing to me! I am the wave of the future! If I want to withdraw the prize and sell this woman on the slave market no one can stop me!"  
Brejik turned his hateful glare from the Duro mediating the race towards Bastila, his eyes widening in disbelief as the Padawan sent out a Force push, forcing the cage open. The edge of the rising cage door struck the Vulkar standing guard and Bastila delivered a sharp kick to the staggering Trandoshan's head, knocking him unconscious as she collected the Vulkar's double-bladed sword. The Padawan gave a triumphant smile before she scowled, giving Brejik a look full of distaste as she gave him her thoughts on the matter.

"I might have something to say about that!"  
Brejik immediately began shouting to his guards to kill Bastila, Revan and everyone in the area. Hidden Bek riders scrambled for their weapons as Black Vulkar thugs raised their own and Revan moved like a blur within the chaos, his sword coming from its hilt in an instant and slicing the head clean off a Vulkar. Blaster bolts reflected from the shield and Revan dodged the next set, trying to preserve his shield as he charged forward, imbedding his blade to its hilt in another Vulkar's stomach. Turning, Revan caught the Vulkar's pistol from its hand, firing four shots to another Vulkar that was tracking Bastila and trying to shoot the Padawan as she dodged the shots and raced for Brejik. Feeling something tugging at his belt, Revan pulled away from the collapsing Vulkar, turning to shoot another in the face before he moved to retrieve his blade. Hidden Bek riders and bystanders ran for the streets away from the violence and Revan turned to shoot the Vulkar Bastila had knocked unconscious dead before he grasped the hilt of his sword imbedded in the gut of a Black Vulkar. The Vulkar groaned and Revan pulled the blade free, ignoring the blood as he moved to join Bastila in fighting Brejik.

"Need a hand?"  
Revan asked, watching as the Padawan moved with fluid grace that any Jedi who had trained their whole lives possessed. Bastila did not answer, Brejik proving to be an annoying man to kill as he kept a powerful personal shield that deflected the blows Bastila landed. The man's melee skills were weak but his armor and the shield proved to keep Bastila at bay, moving forward to exploit an opening, Revan noticed a long cylinder hanging on the man's belt and drove his blade for Brejik's head, stunning the man long enough for him to remove the prize while Bastila stripped the shield generator from Brejik's arm. Brejik sputtered in rage before the Padawan twisted her double-bladed vibrosword in the air, taking Brejik's head cleanly off.

"Maybe that will teach those bloody Vulkars to keep a Jedi prisoner."  
Bastila took a small amount of satisfaction in defeating the man that had enslaved her before turning wary eyes to Revan. Catching sight of the cylinder in Revan's hands, Bastila immediately lowered herself into a defensive stance, her eyes resting on her saberstaff for a moment before traveling to Revan's eyes.

"If you think you can collect me as a prize, Revan you are sorely mistaken!"  
Revan smirked at Bastila, tossing her lightsaber to her before he shed his cloak and held it out to the Padawan. Bastila dropped her double-bladed vibrosword and caught her saberstaff instinctively before she narrowed her eyes at Revan, a gust of wind through the Lower City reminding her of her lack of clothing. Grudgingly and with a slow and cautious movement, Bastila pulled the black leather and cloth cloak from Revan's hands, pulling it tightly around her exposed body and trying to ignore the strong and surprisingly pleasant scent it held. Revan's smirk grated on her nerves and Bastila quickly adjusted the cloak, fastening the nearly invisible straps and finding it much too large for her tastes though it served its purpose.

"What are you trying to prove, Revan?"  
Bastila all but hissed, her gray eyes twin stones as they moved to follow each movement the former Sith Lord took. Revan pondered the situation for several moments before holding his hands out in a non-threatening gesture.

"You saved my life, I helped free you from these Vulkars. I think its safe to say we're even."  
Bastila's eyes narrowed dangerously as she palmed her lightsaber, shifting it to a more comfortably familiar position as she moved her thumb over the switch.

"Rescued me? I believe I broke the hold of the neural disruptor on my own and I freed myself from the cage. I also slew Brejik... You presence was merely a distraction. I believe it would be more accurate to say that I saved you before and you merely watched as I saved myself!"  
Revan's smirk dropped completely from his face as his brown eyes narrowed. The former Dark Lord of the Sith opened his mouth to shoot off a nasty retort to the Jedi's arrogance before he heard a subtle click and glanced to the Vulkar he had run through with his sword. Revan's eyes narrowed as he watched with slight disbelief as the barely living Vulkar opened his hand, a metallic thump echoing in the silence that had fallen between Bastila and himself in that split second. Revan's eyes widened as he saw his own plasma grenade and realized what the pulling on his belt had been. Acting on instinct, Revan lunged towards Bastila, nearly clothes-lining the Padawan as he dove for the small booth used by the race announcer. The plasma grenade flared brightly, its deadly charge igniting and filling the race observation area with a blinding white light before it faded and left a cloud of smoke and smoldering bodies in its wake.

Bastila groaned as she slowly sat up, rubbing her head before she wrinkled her nose in disgust as the scent of smoke and burnt flesh reached her senses. The Padawan could feel burning from the smoke and chemicals of the plasma grenade in her eyes and used the Force to clear her vision before her eyes widened and she rushed to where Revan had fallen short of the protective shielding of the announcer's booth. Using the sleeve of Revan's cloak to bat out the flames on the former Dark Lord's clothing, Bastila sighed in relief as she saw the rise and fall of his shoulders. Revan was wearing extensive body armor and Bastila placed a hand on the former Sith Lord's shoulder, rolling him to his side and flinching as she saw the pale face and clenched jaw. Revan had used his hands at the last moment to shield his face and while his vambraces shielded his forearms and wrists, his hands had taken the brunt of the damage and his black leather gloves were burned to tatters as red and black burns marred his hands down to his wrist. Minor burns covered other parts of Revan's body but his hands were seemingly locked in an open gesture as he struggled to his knees with Bastila's help.

"This is the second explosion you've saved me from..."  
Bastila said softly, her fear of the man replaced with concern as she lowered her hands to his own, flinching with Revan as she touched the burns. Pulling off the gloves the Vulkars had placed on her hands, Bastila began to collect the Force around her, a sense of alarm growing through the bond as she opened her eyes and met Revan's brown.

"M- Malak is watching. We- we need to go. Carth Onasi is- is waiting with a speeder."

Revan's voice was shaky with his pain and Bastila could practically feel it through their bond though Revan was focusing on keeping his mental shields up and trying not to go into shock. Sensing Malak and dozens of other Dark Jedi searching the area through the Force, Bastila cursed silently, pulling Revan to his feet and biting back an apology as the former Sith Lord choked on a pained shout.

"There- there must be something I can do..."  
Bastila's cultured Talravin accent was shaky, her voice almost small as she gazed at the charred flesh of Revan's hands. Were they able to use the Force or if they had access to a kolto tank it would have been easy to heal and without scarring but Bastila knew it would be a danger using the Force and there was little she could do at the moment since there were no kolto tanks within sight.

"Pr- Promise you'll keep who- who I am a s- secret."  
Bastila turned her gray eyes to meet Revan's, his brown eyes managing to carry a plea and a threat in the same look. Shivering slightly, Bastila licked her lips, coughing slightly against the acrid scent of smoke and charred flesh before she reached through the bond, seeking his intentions.

"Now is n- not the Bloody time!:  
Revan hissed, his eyes gleaming with a golden light before it faded to brown and Bastila bit back her retort, torn between duty to the Republic and the Jedi Order and to the man that had likely just saved her life and suffered wounds she very well might have if he'd chosen to save himself instead. Recalling the lies the Jedi Masters and Healers had told her, Bastila tried to make sense of the conflict before she decided on a compromise.

"Un- until you are able to recover from this... I- I will keep your secret, Revan. I assume you are going my the alias of Tauryn Katarn?"  
Revan's pained expression looked more like a pinched glare as he nodded to the Padawan, moving towards a side exit of the swoop track and stumbling slightly as his wounds protested. Bastila acknowledged Revan's nod with a sigh, her brow furrowing as she adopted a troubled expression. Keeping a firm grasp of her saberstaff, Bastila followed Revan, reaching out a gentle hand to help support him. Revan's muscles were all tensed, his body shivering from his efforts to keep from going into shock and he moved towards where the others were waiting, his thoughts focused simply on getting to the rendevous point and keeping his aura hidden from Malak.

"I- I cannot guarantee I will keep your secret indefinitely, Revan but... given the circumstances I will, Force I can't believe I am doing this, I will give you a chance to- to explain your intentions to me... in private before I chose whether to reveal this to the others."  
Revan did not reply with words, merely offered a stiff nod, his body shivering as his eyes began to sting with the ash and chemicals from the explosion.


	15. Chapter 14: Setbacks

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

AN: One word. School. Some of us have lost everything good in our lives, some of us have lost everything good in ourselves... Make sure you don't repeat the mistakes of others, learn from their faults and make it your strength... heh maybe I'll use that as some made-up Revan quote in the next chapter. Sorry for the delay but I have been busy over the last... God, two months. I really am sorry and I don't know if I'll have the time to update too terribly often but for those of you who are stillreading I _will _finish this story.

Chapter 14: Setbacks

Bastila Shan pulled the edges of Revan's cloak tightly around her, shivering slightly at the draft passing through Taris' Lower City as the two humans worked their way along a narrow walkway bypassing a chasm that dropped down into darkness, likely going all the way down to Taris' Undercity. Bastila tried to match Revan's pace but found herself having to stop from time to time as the former Sith Lord stumbled along at a slow jog. The man's face was nearly as pale as it had been when she'd first set eyes upon it and Bastila winced as Revan tripped, his pained and exhausted state making him about as graceful as a rabid Bantha. Revan's concentration was divided between staying conscious and keeping out of shock and keeping his aura suppressed. It wouldn't do for Malak to sense his old Master, especially if he was in his current state. With a groan, Revan rolled onto his back, simply gazing up at the light filtering through the gaps between the walkways hundreds of meters above them.  
"I think- I think I'm rather comfortable here."  
Revan muttered, seeing Bastila kneel beside him in the corner of his eye. The pretty Jedi was little more than a woman-shaped blur to Revan's eyes and he took in a steadying breath, sitting up with a grunt as Bastila's small hands helped him to stand. Revan leaned against a support column, collecting himself and cursing his stupidity for not bringing a medpac. A nice big syringe of kolto or even painkillers... maybe a lethal dose since he was Force-sensitive and it wouldn't exactly kill him like a normal human would have been a nice thing to have. Flinching as a sharp pain and pressure pressed against his mangled hands, Revan blinked his eyes into focus, seeing Bastila's concerned and slightly nauseated expression. His hands were burned down to the muscle tissue, tendons and muscles and even a bone showing here or there and while most of his nerves had been burned away there were enough nerves near the scar tissue to let him know he was still alive.

"Kriffin plasma."  
Revan snarled, spitting out the curse and the source of his injury in the same tone. Bastila flinched slightly at the curse and the way she could see Revan's muscles moving in his hands between scraps of charred flesh and gloves and she swallowed back bile, not used to seeing such vicious wounds.  
"Left pocket of the cloak, comm headset. Carth and the others should be standing by for my signal..."

Bastila nodded, pulling her hands away from Revan's as she pulled out the headset and switched on the encrypted comm device. Static hissed over the line before Carth's voice spat out an annoyed rant.

"Dammit Tauryn, you better be dead if you're not going to bother checking in on schedule. Half the Bek riders that were in the race are already back and I hear the Vulkars are up in arms. According to the local holoreports there's a battalion of Sith being dispatched to the race area because one of those bastards spotted Bastila. Double-time it soldier and you'd better have Bastila with you!"  
Bastila frowned at the man's tone, sparing Revan a glance to see how he was taking the Telosian's rant. She'd actually been pleased that Carth Onasi had survived but she had little knowledge of who else had besides Revan. Seeing that Revan was merely staring blankly at the device with his head swaying slightly, Bastila quickly responded in his stead.

"If you are quite finished, Commander Onasi. Tauryn and I are en route to your position but we may be delayed as... I'm afraid the Ensign was wounded in the exchange with the Vulkars at the race tracks... there was an incident with a plasma grenade and well... Right, it might be better if you were to come to our position. Is it safe to transmit our coordinates?"  
Carth shared a concerned glance with Kaera while Mission frowned behind him. Reining in his annoyance, Carth allowed his concern for Tauryn to overpower his annoyance at the Mandalorian's lack of communications since arriving at the race. They'd only known he'd won because of the broadcast on the holonews link and the cameras had missed the firefight that followed.

"Is that Mandalorian oaf alright?"  
Okay, so maybe he was still a little annoyed with Tauryn but he got his question out there. Kaera frowned at Carth while Zalbaar growled menacingly in the back seat of the speeder, his eyes narrowed as he tightened his grip on his blaster rifle. If Tauryn had come to grave harm his honor would be forfeit as he hadn't been there to honor his lifedebt.  
"Mandalorian? Wha- Tauryn is not in critical condition although I would like to get him to a medical facility as soon as possible. He's suffered some severe burns on his hands and other parts of his body but luckily his armor protected him from the plasma grenade."Carth winced, knowing that plasma grenades were designed to hurt. A lot. They were normally used to clear bunkers or fortified positions and if any of the superheated plasma touched you it would burn through skin and muscle like it was butter. Keeping his mind focused on the mission, Carth checked their communicators, seeing that the Sith had locked on to their transmission before it switched frequencies randomly and in sync with the other communicator to free up their communications.

"Clear to transmit coordinates."  
A small series of numbers flashed across a small display on the communicator and Carth handed his comm to Kaera, following the planetary degree chart on the speeder's dashboard as it linked with an orbiting satellite to show the clearest route to Tauryn and Bastila's positions. Thankful that Bastila was at least safely free from the Vulkars and Sith, at least for the moment; Carth guided the speeder to his comrades, keeping his face set in a neutral expression though his brow was twisted slightly with a brooding and furrow.

"They'll be here shortly..."  
Bastila said softly to Revan, her brow furrowed slightly with worry as she watched the former Dark Lord of the Sith swaying slightly, most of his weight resting against a support column. The damage to his hands was horrific but she knew kolto could work wonders and could quite literally regenerate the damaged muscle tissue, skin and tendons. Still, it wasn't much of a comfort to her as she watched the man warily, not knowing whether his injuries were a good thing or not.

"Suppose you're wondering why I'm not going into a murderous rage?"  
Bastila started slightly, flushing when she realized she had been staring at his hands. Revan flexed his hands slightly, frowning as three of his fingers refused to move. The muscle damage would have to be repaired professionally and he was glad a certain doctor in the Upper City owed him a favor. Bastila shook her head hesitantly in reply to Revan's question, concentrating on his pale features while the former Dark Lord merely smiled. The smile wasn't a kind one.

"Then what is going on in that pretty little head of yours?"  
Revan's voice was like a shard of ice and Bastila felt a chill run down her spine, her shoulders shivering slightly. The man's voice seemed to cut right through her senses and she wondered vaguely if he'd always had that effect on people before she muddled past her scrambled thoughts and grasped the question she'd had since speaking to Carth.

"You- you're a Mandalorian?"  
Bastila's question was met by silence from Revan, the former Dark Lord sighing after several moments and nodding in reply. He wondered if he'd get so many questions by telling people he was a bald Wookiee with how many interrogations he'd had to go through because of his origins. Bastila seemed to be taking some time absorbing the information as she tried to get over just how uncomfortable Revan was making her. She knew he could have just as easily left her to die or suffer injury from the grenade and what he'd said to her while she was still imprisoned by the Vulkars kept bouncing around in her mind as she tried to pin down the possibilities. It didn't comfort her to know that someone like Darth Malak had plans for her and having the man that was apparently Malak's teacher in the ways of the Darkside plotting her fate as well wasn't a soothing thought either. Revan had all but said that he planned to convert her to his beliefs and she found herself terrified at that.

_"Surely I cannot be- be converted to his mind set. I- I refuse to be his pawn in some quest for revenge! He must be using the bond somehow to confuse me... though there is no excuse for the actions of the Jedi Council. They- they intentionally lied to me, the healers did as well... What would be so important that Jedi Masters would betray their oaths as Jedi to respect all life?"  
_Bastila found her thoughts betraying her will and she sighed, suddenly feeling extremely weary. The actions of the Jedi Council and the Healers that had been in charge of Revan were criminal and betrayed every base oath and moral of either organization. For the Healers who did harm to a patient and for the Jedi who betrayed their oaths to respect life, to respect the nature of the Force. It would have been more forgivable to keep Revan imprisoned for the rest of his life or even to kill him but to violate his mind, to destroy the very essence of his being was an affront to the Force and she could not so easily overlook such a thing.

"I- why would the Jedi try to erase your mind? What would be so important for them to..."  
Bastila trailed off, almost disgusted by the surprise on Revan's face. She recalled how he'd said he'd left the Jedi little choice in the matter of their treatment of him and she found herself hoping to never fall into the Sith's hand if what was done to Revan was not so terrible a thing in his eyes. Her disgust did not end with the Sith and she found herself wondering just what the Jedi Order was capable of, what they'd done in the past. Revan smirked slightly, sensing the Padawan's shaken beliefs. The Order she'd spent her entire life serving had betrayed her, betrayed all of their students in a way through their hypocrisy. How could a Master tell a student to respect life and the nature of the Force if they were willing to violate it. Revan decided to finish Bastila's unspoken fears. They were his own, once upon a time.

"For them to _rape_ my mind? For them to allow an enemy into their midst and force him to becoming a mindless _slave_?"  
Revan caught Bastila's flinch at his emphasized words and decided to back off. No sense driving the girl completely from the Jedi. He was, or at least had been fighting a war of conversion and the Jedi Order still had their uses. Few though they may be. It was a mind set Revan had adopted at the close of the Mandalorian war when he saw the results of the Jedi Order's inaction which cost the lives of many of the Jedi who had fought alongside him and chosen to leave the Order. They were turned away, exiled for doing what had to be done and Revan saw the Order's fear of the Mandalorian's war as a weakness. A weakness he, Malak and a hundred other former Jedi who fought alongside them had learned to despise. When Revan spoke next it was in a soft and calm voice, a voice he knew would strike the Padawan more than a stinging shout laced with exaggerations or the pure, burning hatred he could feel within him at the thought of the Jedi Order.  
"They tried to destroy my mind, to destroy who and what I was and they tried to reprogram me like a droid. Even I never tried anything so duplicitous. I always wanted those I tortured to see things from my perspective. To _choose_ to follow me. I never took away their free will to resist me."  
It was true, he'd never forced anyone to give in to him or his demands by violating their minds with anything but words. He had from time to time used the Force to persuade someone to bugger off but always as a last resort and usually to avoid having attention drawn to him by drunken imbeciles during a mission. Not to say breaking every bone in their body hadn't occurred to him but he could be subtle for time to time if it was called for.

"You- You're trying to manipulate me!"  
Bastia accused after a few moments of silence that followed Revan's statement. Smirking slightly and ignoring his own physical pain, Revan shrugged.

"A little."  
The former Sith Lord admitted. Bastila chose to answer by simply narrowing her eyes. Drawing in a calming breath, the Padawan schooled her features carefully, making certain the bond between them was closed off as best as her mental shields would allow. It wasn't very comforting though since Revan, a master of many Force-forms had difficulty keeping her out of his mind because of the bond. Feeling a cold tendril of energy run down her spine, Bastila shivered slightly, crossing her arms over her chest and scowling at Revan. Returning the favor, Bastila searched the surface of Revan's mind, finding only a sense of conflicted emotions that left more questions than answers. Shuddering, Bastila realized that Revan was just as conflicted as she was and she wondered if Revan could be swayed to her viewpoint. Dismissing the notion, the Padawan kept a wary eye on the wounded former Sith Lord, her eyes flickering to his scorched hands before she spotted the shape of a speeder approaching the edge of the walkway. Bastila could not hide the surprise as she saw a fellow Jedi, Kaera Nurr.

"Well... this is fortunate."  
Bastila commented, sparing Revan a calculating look. She would have to question Kaera later and see if the slightly older Jedi were able to see past Revan's impressive mental shields. Resting a hand on Revan's shoulder, Bastila took a firm but gentle hold of his arm, guiding him to the craft while the others looked at the injuries with mixtures of sympathy, horror and shock. Taking a seat beside Revan, Bastila accepted the medkit Mission handed to her and quietly filled a syringe of painkillers that she injected Revan with immediately. Revan seemed to melt in his seat on the speeder, his pained expression losing its edge though not disappearing entirely.  
"I think its time Doctor Zelka paid up on that debt he owes us."  
Kaera commented, offering a nod to her fellow Jedi after inspecting Revan's hands carefully. Revan made no move to acknowledge that he heard anything before he simply closed his eyes and lowered his head.

"Once Tauryn's injuries are treated I would very much like to be filled in on your plan for getting off world."  
Carth winced, the gesture lost on Bastila as she only had a view of the back of his head. Kaera frowned slightly, knowing that while she was a Jedi Knight and Bastila a Padawan that the younger woman was in charge of their doomed mission.  
"Funny thing about that."Revan muttered, his eyes cracking open as he gave Bastila a pointed look. The Padawan rose a brow in silent question to his words, waiting for him to elaborate.

"We've been so busy trying to track you down and free you that we haven't worked out a real solid plan beyond getting a fast ship and hoping the orbiting fleet and gun platforms don't vaporize us."  
Bastila scowled in annoyance, wanting to be off of Taris as quickly as possible before she collected herself and let out an calming sigh. Biting back the urge to retort with some incredulously disbelieving insult to the lack of progress, Bastila stared at Revan's mangled hands, knowing he'd likely throw her comment back in her face and she'd only look like a fool.

"Yes... well I'm sure you've had _some_ time to work out a more effective plan..?"  
Bastila could not keep the hopeful tone from her voice and it seemed to take the edge off of the glare Revan was giving her. Sighing, Revan leaned to the side, wincing slightly as bright light flooded the exposed canopy of the speeder as they rose near Taris' Upper levels through an artificial canyon created by the sprawling city scape.

"Not really. You were a very hard person to find."  
Revan commented casually, closing his eyes once more and grimacing as the effects of the drugs nearly drove him to unconsciousness. Bastila took stock of the others' reaction to Revan and noted that they seemed at ease in his presence and they were also very concerned for him. Sparing a look at Kaera as the Knight gave Revan a concerned look, Bastila debated letting her fellow Jedi in on the dangers of Revan's true identity. She couldn't very well keep the man maimed to keep him subdued and she couldn't kill him outright. Neither of those options would sit well with the Padawan and she stopped herself when she wanted to add that it was not the Jedi way. She was beginning to wonder exactly what the Jedi way was if they would do such a deplorable thing as erase Revan's mind and rewrite it while he was still there, still capable of recovering as she knew he eventually had.

_"Don't take so many concerns upon yourself. In that way lies madness."  
_Bastila started slightly as Revan's voice echoed in her mind, quickly calming herself and ignoring the confused looks from Mission and Kaera. She still hadn't been introduced to the Wookiee or the Twi'lek and Bastila saw little point since there would be more time later, time to reflect and meditate. Carefully tracing the same invisible link she'd used while restrained in the cage, Bastila queried Revan's unexpected and thoughtful advice.  
_"I find little comfort in you speaking of madness, Sith Lord. I will not allow myself to succumb to your will. I am first and foremost a Jedi and I will not let down my guard in your presence. You may have saved me but your reasons are not entirely altruistic. While I am... grateful for your sparing me injury I will remind you that I swore and oath and your goals do not mirror that oath."_

Revan looked as if he were asleep but a small quirk of his lips as well as the voice in her mind told Bastila otherwise. Feeling annoyed at the man's calm certainty, Bastila tried to block out her doubts and fears, a part of her horrified at the thought of what the bond could show Revan of her. He could very well force his way past her mental shields and while he'd said he did not take away other's identities, it was a fear that would not leave the Padawan's mind.

An hour later, Revan found himself lying on a medical cot, sitting up with his back propped against the wall of the medical facility while Doctor Zelka Forn. The dark-skinned human doctor was examining the wounds carefully, making sure to honor his patient's request to be conscious during the initial treatment. Revan noted the absence of the doctor's assistant and smirked slightly, wondering if the man was killed by some Exchange thug when they found out the vial of Rakgoul serum they got from an _anonymous_ source wasn't the only one. The Exchange probably thought Gurney or whatever the rat's name was had given the serum to the doctor. Filled with painkillers and antibiotics, Revan closed his eyes, slipping into unconsciousness as Zelka finished coating his wounds in a regenerative kolto paste before wrapping his burnt hands. He'd still need a night in a kolto tank after several days with the dressings and Revan was loathe to be in the healing substance. The scent was enough to bring a curl of disgust to his lips. It was bad enough having the slime on his hands, to have it surrounding him, pressing down on him from all sides as it filled him, suffocated him. Well... that was just unpleasant. How bloody dreadful.

"Have you taken leave of your senses, Bastila?"  
Kaera Nurr prided herself on her calm control. In any battle situation she could instantly react as a Jedi should and separate her own feelings from what had to be done. It had saved her life dozens of times but it did not apply to what she was hearing from her fellow Jedi. Bastila Shan, she was certain had gone completely stark raving mad. It would have been nice, would have been simpler if the younger Jedi was mad but Kaera had a bad feeling settle into the pit of her stomach as she listened to her fellow Jedi asking probing questions about Tauryn Katarn and any latent Force abilities he'd been showing since meeting him. Carth, Mission and Zalbaar were at the apartment they had been using in the Upper City prior to their venture into Taris' lower levels and Bastila was clad in a simple set of tan trousers, a dark blue tunic and two knee-high dark brown boots. Kaera noted that her own armor felt a bit heavy on her shoulders and loosened her straps, giving her fellow Jedi a wary look.

"I am perfectly sane, Kaera. That man _is_ Darth Revan. He was injured greatly when Malak seized the title of Dark Lord of the Sith and he has been in the Jedi's care ever since. I know this may seem rather far fetched but the Jedi Council wiped Revan's mind, telling me it was too badly damaged to ever fully be recovered. I have my own doubts concerning that but those are for another time. I am merely entrusting you with the explanation of why Tauryn was transferred by special request of the Jedi Order and placed on that ship. The Masters, I am certain wished to reintegrate him back into our ranks or at the very least make use of his subconscious memories for clues as to how the Sith were able to gather so many ships and materials so quickly."

Bastila sighed, wondering if she could get across the importance of Revan's memories. She'd been plagued by dreams, nightmares really of what Revan had experienced and while most of it seemed like an epic display of the most barbaric violence she could ever imagine, there were emotions that went along with the dreams, memories, visions, whatever the Council had called it. A sense of urgency had clouded most of the dreams, desperation, rage, fear. It was strange that Revan could feel fear but she dismissed it for later reflection and concentrated on the strange images of vast fleets, a strange space station and obsidian pylons shaped as a claw, opening to reveal a map of some sort. Ancient, long forgotten ruins, terrifying battles, creatures the likes of which should have only existed in nightmares. Trembling slightly, Bastila closed her eyes, taking a calming breath and preparing to drop her bomb on Kaera.

"The Council was mistaken. Darth Revan remains. He is who you have been dealing with since... well according to him since he joined the crew of the _Endar Spire._ I knew Revan before the wars only through reputation and afterwards, only from seeing him speak or from news holos. I have to withhold judgement of the man until I speak with the Jedi Masters and Healers responsible for his health and his reconstructed identity. This knowledge is a well guarded secret, Kaera. Revan was not supposed to remember who he was... he wasn't even supposed to be physically capable of remembering who he was... they- they said his mind was beyond repair but- No, I will not think of that now. There are more important matters to attend to."  
Kaera had taken this all in with the silence and passivity of a first-year Jedi Padawan and the young woman crossed her arms over her chest, uncrossed them and then sat down heavily in on of Zelka Forn's chairs. The Doctor and his staff were gone and Bastila had assured the Doctor she and Kaera were well-versed in emergency medical treatment should anything go wrong with Revan. The Doctor had wearily agreed, going to his own apartment to rest while leaving Revan in the care of the two Jedi.

"He should be in prison, Bastila! He should be dead, executed by all rights! How- how can we not tell the others of the dangers they are in, how can we expose them to this- this Dark Lord?"  
Revan had woken in the middle of the night in Zelka Forn's humble medical facility to the sound of risen female voices. Some subconscious, instinctual part of the Mandalorian told him to close his eyes and pretend he was asleep but Revan remained awake, staring through weary eyes at the dim lighting around him before he pulled himself to his feet, ignoring the pull on his body's other injuries and keeping his arms bent at the elbow in a ninety degree angle and pointed in front of him as he walked towards the adjoining door to the next room. The door hissed open and Revan walked in as Kaera finished a fairly colorful retort to Bastila, all semblance of Jedi serenity lost to the wind as she tried to pull rank on Bastila.

"You are only a Padawan and while you outrank me with the Republic's hierarchy, this is a Jedi matter and as such I am making a judgement call here, Bastila. I am the Knight, you the Padawan. Revan is a danger to everything we are sworn to uphold. He must be stopped or subdued. At the very least we should tell the others. You're mind is being clouded by doubts of the Council, doubts of yourself and I have no fear of telling you it is likely Revan's doing. How do you know if this- this bond between the two of you is not his doing? His way of manipulating you into becoming his slave or his new toy or even his new apprentice!"  
Revan rolled his eyes. That was just too obvious and while he liked to get results, he also liked to be a little original about his evil plots. Laughing silently at the thought, Revan calmly seated himself, waiting for the two Jedi to realize they were no longer alone. He wasn't surprised that Bastila noticed him first, though he was surprised that she chose to ignore his presence and offer Kaera a retort in a clipped Talravin accent that left a smirk on his face. Bastila even pulled rank on Kaera which brought a mental laugh to Revan.  
"From what you've told me, _Lieutenant_ Nurr. You owe Revan your life, as does Zalbaar. I'm certain Mission and Carth have been saved as a result of his actions and I would never have been able to overcome the neural disruptor or the Vulkars without his presence. Twice Revan has saved my life and shielded me from harm while it has fallen on him. I admit the first time may not have been intentional but I could not- I could not leave a living being to die in such a horrible way..."  
Bastila faltered slightly in her triad at the horrifying memory of Revan's condition after Malak's betrayal. Remembering the Republic Soldier trying to mutilate Revan's corpse brought a cold feeling in the pit of the Padawan's stomach and she pondered Revan's earlier arguments. She wondered if she really was fighting on the right side of the war, she wondered honestly if there really was a right side to the fight or if both sides were capable of exercising the evil the Sith were unleashing on the galaxy. Shuddering at the thought, Bastila fixed Kaera with a pointed look, seeing that the Knight was uncertain herself as to why Revan would save her with risk to himself and little to gain from the effort. Revan could have simply let the Dark Jedi and her continue to fight and let the power coupling explode and kill her or he could very well have left her for dead and then killed Carth himself. He could have ignored Mission's help and simply flaunted his considerable power around instead of working covertly. It left far too many unanswered questions and contradictions and the Knight wasn't entirely sure she wanted to look too closely at those answers.  
"Bastila... Listen to reason. He is dangerous... perhaps we should have him sedated for the rest of our-"  
Kaera cut herself off, seeing a shadow on the edge of her vision she turned to see Revan seated calmly in a chair, his eyes amused and his face twisted into a sinister smirk. The man was only wearing his black trousers and boots, most of his injuries having been on his hands while his armor had protected the rest of him. The Jedi Knight stared at the former Dark Lord for several tense moments, her brow furrowed as she tried to sense him through the Force, tried to do come to terms with her own questions as to why he would bother with the things he had. He'd been violent, but nothing beyond what one would expect of a _tamed_ Mandalorian as some called the Mandalorians that tried to live outside of what remained of the Clans or the Mandalore system.

"Can you create a Force-barrier?"  
Revan's voice was flat, toneless and his face was as blank as a stone. Kaera found herself nodding despite her fears and uncertainty and resentment of the man and she shivered slightly at the challenging gleam in his eyes, so similar to what had been there when she thought he was simply a Mandalorian but also promising much more should she dare stand against him than a mere Mandalorian warrior could do.

"Very well. Bastila, you lied to me. I am not recovered... but we can remedy that quite soon if the two of you would cooperate."  
Bastila frowned, unable to hold Revan's gaze as she looked to the floor. She had said she would keep his identity secret until he recovered and it was obvious he was still unable to defend himself let alone even dress himself with how badly damaged his hands were. A part of the Padawan's mind dismissed the concern and noted that it was necessary to share the danger with her fellow Jedi but that same voice also cautioned her on trusting the Council. The Council had lied to her and she, by extension had lied as well. She'd lied before on various occasions but never, never unless it was to spare another.  
"Is it wise for us to allow you to recover?"  
Kaera asked cautiously, flinching despite herself at the cold look of hatred that settled over Revan's features as his eyes began to glow with a golden light. Flecks of yellow gleamed in the dimly lit room and flashed in Revan's once brown eyes and Kaera wondered just how defenseless Revan truly was.

"I think it would be in everyone's interests. If it makes you feel any better, I promise that I won't kill any of you in your sleep. Or even when you're unaware. I'll only defend myself until such time as my continued presence in your company presents a significant danger to me."  
Revan allowed Kaera and Bastila to see through his mental barriers just enough to know he was telling the truth before he slammed them shut and fixed his hard, golden eyes on both of the Jedi.

"Create a Force barrier around this room, Kaera Nurr."  
There was a hint of menace, barely restrained rage in Revan's voice and Kaera steeled herself, her mouth set in a firm line as she weight the pros and cons of her assistance. Remembering Revan's clever deceit but also his saving of her life, Kaera sighed, taking in Bastila's earlier explanations. The Council had betrayed them if what was said was true and while it went against her better judgement, she knew she couldn't simply leave Revan in pain and crippled as he was. She also had a feeling Bastila was going to help him either way, especially with the way the Padawan was frowning at Revan's bandaged hands with her brow furrowed slightly in concern and her teeth worrying her lower lip. With a sigh and a cautious look towards Revan, Kaera knelt to the floor, throwing her concentration into creating a Force barrier while Bastila moved to Revan's side, carefully removing the bandages and holding his scarred hands in her own as she closed her eyes and channeled the Force's healing energies into the former Dark Lord. Revan added his own power to the healing trance and his hands rapidly began to heal, the tissue regenerating at an astonishing rate between the Padawan's and the former Sith Lord's combined powers. Kaera shivered slightly at just how much power was being given off by the two and she found she could barely contain it within the barrier. Almost as soon as it began, it ended and Bastila gently examined Revan's hands while his eyes faded to a dull but natural brown. Revan opened and closed his hands, flecks of dead and burnt skin crumbling away as his newly regenerated hands responded to his commands.

"Thank you my dears."  
Revan said calmly, slowly removing his hands from Bastila's and standing before he opened and closed his hands experimentally and smirked.

"What you two have just done could be called extremely compassionate or extremely foolish depending on who's point of view but... well you two are lucky I am a man of my word... for the most part."

Revan was no stranger to lies but his honor would not allow him to blatantly exploit compassion. His lies were normally used as a tactical guise, a mask to his feigns and his greater plans as a military commander. He rarely made lies personal and he had no wish to make it a new hobby.

"Now then... This puts us in a fairly precarious situation. With Malak and his legions of Dark Jedi so near... not to mention several million Sith on those orbiting ships, we're going to need to be... subtle. No Force-powers, no lightsabers and no using of Bastila's or my own actual names. One slip could be disastrous and if Bastila is going to be out amongst the Sith and Tarisians, we're going to have to work on a disguise of some kind. No offense, Bastila but you can't really go around as you are, you're too recognizable."  
Bastila nodded, twisting her hands together nervously as she tried to make sense of the situation. She was afraid she'd done something terribly foolish just then but something about Revan, something about his aura, his eyes perhaps, something told her she had done the right thing. Kaera watched her young fellow Jedi and sighed, standing and unconsciously lowering her hand to her belt, her right hand resting inches from her lightsaber hilt. The blonde Knight frowned slightly when she saw Bastila make no such defensive move but she noticed Revan smirking at her as his newly restored hands crossed behind his back, clasping together at the base of his spine. Something in his eyes and the gesture caused Kaera to move her hand slightly away from her weapon, a warning that was as clear as day. He had seen her fight, fought alongside her and knew he had nothing to fear from her. It was as humbling as it was terrifying.

"I suppose you make a good point."  
Kaera stated evenly, her body tensing in case she should defend herself from the deposed Sith Lord while she tried to reign in her own feelings on the matter. As a Jedi she couldn't leave him injured when she had the means to heal him but he was the embodiment of the Jedi Order's enemy, the mastermind behind the war raging across their galaxy and Kaera Nurr wondered if Bastila Shan was really so ignorant to believe a monster, a mass murderer like Revan could be reformed. An old teaching, passed on through the Jedi Order for thousands of generations brushed Kaera's mind and she lowered her gaze from Revan and Bastila, swallowing the lump in her throat. No one was beyond redemption, no one was beyond help if only given the chance and the will and the Knight was slightly shamed that a Padawan would see the simple wisdom in such a teaching rather than a Knight. If Revan were to view Jedi as his comrades once more, perhaps his will to destroy the Order would lose its edge, perhaps he would calm himself and see reason, see what he had become. After all, Revan had been a good man once, a symbol of what the Jedi Order was supposed to be in the dark days of the Mandalorian wars. Then the betrayal had come and the Sith and nothing made sense anymore. Pulling herself from her thoughts, Kaera frowned at Bastila, her brow furrowed slightly as she watched the interaction between Padawan and deposed Sith Lord.

"It will work.."  
Revan decided, offering the slightly jumpy Padawan a subdued smile. A small hint of color rose in Bastila's cheeks before she schooled her features and nodded stiffly to Revan, deciding it would be a waste of energy to be constantly wary of the man. She had a feeling that Revan would be fairly straightforward if he was going to betray them. His betrayal of the Republic had been a fine example of how blatant his betrayals were. He'd left the Republic with a third of its fleet at the end of the Mandalorian wars and as his first action as the Dark Lord of the Sith in his war against the Republic he captured the Republic's fleet yards of Foerost. It was a challenge, a slap to the face of the Republic and the Jedi Order, a move as psychological as it was tactical. The Republic had lost over half its fleet between Malachor V and Foerost and by returning as a the self-declared Dark Lord of the Sith, Revan had made it abundantly clear where he stood. Revan had no vested interests in ridiculously complex nets of intrigue and political red tape. His solution was to conquer or convert. A strategy that had served him well for a time and allowed the Mandalorian in him to keep his honor. Though the assassinations were a bit of a gray area they were as necessary as his legions of Sith troopers, assault droids and starships.

"What will work?"

Kaera asked suspiciously, her blue eyes narrowed as they passed between Bastila and Revan with a measuring glare. Her younger counterpart had been wary of Revan moments before and then suddenly calmed, something that neither Sith Lord or Padawan seemed to notice as they conversed quietly with one another.

"Have you been listening to a word we've said?"  
Revan asked, a slight curve on his lips telling of his amusement. He'd assumed the Jedi would be listening to each and every word he spoke, trying to see whatever insidious plants he was trying to create. Not that his plans were all that insidious, he just wanted supreme power over the galaxy, the Jedi Order and Republic reformed into his design and the True Sith defeated. So maybe it was a bit too much to ask for but Revan was never one to ask for anything. If you want something, you take it, you earn it through merit and mettle or you do without. Whining and wishing never accomplished anything.

"We're going to call Padawan Shan here Marie for the time being."

Kaera rose a brow slightly, wondering where that came from before she recalled that Bastila had a middle name, one she would respond to just as well as her first and last. Nodding her agreement on the matter, Kaera carefully exited the room, making sure to keep Revan in her line of sight until she was clear of him. As deals with the devil go, it wasn't so bad just yet, still. She had a bad feeling about this.

Bastila watched her fellow Jedi depart warily, wondering briefly if Kaera would try something rash. When the slightly older Jedi left without further comment, Bastila turned her attention back to Revan, seeing a strange look on his face as he stared at her.

"What?"

Revan could feel the memory, the emotions and smells and the sights and sounds, a man's voice, gentle, loving and soft caressing a little girl's fears as he held her tightly, keeping her safe and calling her my little Marie. A childhood filled with loving parents was not a Jedi's or a Mandalorian's and Bastila's vivid memory of her father was something new to Revan. He knew little of love, his only experience with the matter being a love of battle, a respect of his Master and of Malak when he had been an apprentice and it gave the deposed Dark Lord pause for all of two seconds before he brushed the emotion aside as useless. What room did love have in his war. There was no room for love or softness or mercy and kindness in his war. Fear, fear he could use. Fear brought results much faster than love.


	16. Chapter 15: A Reflection of Hell

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_"I have no sons to carry on my name, no daughters to remember the battles I've fought... Only this blade in my hand, and the armor on my back... My people, __**our **__people die a slow death on the rim, pressed between two beasts that threaten to overwhelm us with what our kind fears most... a slow death, one without glory, without honor. Each generation is smaller, weaker than the last; the blood of the Taung all but gone from our ranks... Better to fight against such a fate, to stand and to be remembered than to fade into nothingness like a thousand other races... I make no apologies for my actions, Revan... I merely ask what you would do were you in my position... The Mandalorians will live on... despite what you have done to us this day, nothing can erase our glory. I die on my feet! Not my kn-"_

_The Final Words of Mandalore the Ultimate as heard by General Revan Bloodraven_

Chapter 15: A Reflection of Hell

Fragments, pieces of a life built upon violence, discipline and control were what kept Bastila Shan awake at night. Days had passed, perhaps even weeks since the Taris Swoop Bike Championship Race and her reunion with her worse half. Pacing the darkened apartment, Bastila sighed heavily, moving to the fresher and splashing cool water on her face. The war Revan had unleashed upon the Republic during his reign as the Dark Lord had been brutal to say the least but there was something about it that seemed almost clinical. Perhaps it was the detachment Revan felt for his soldiers, for the worlds he destroyed. A detachment that had not been perfected until the end of the Mandalorian wars.

Flashes, images. They burned her mind with their brutality. The Mandalorian wars had been forgotten in the wake of Revan and Malak's betrayals but they still lived on in Revan's mind, a reflection of the Hell Mandalore the Ultimate unleashed. The sheer number of dead, the entire of the Mandalorian race in arms against the Republic, ten Republic soldiers for each Mandalorian warrior, sometimes a Jedi, a brother or sister in the Force... images of the High Council members and Revan arguing, Masters and Knights long-dead, fallen for a noble but doomed purpose, broken upon the engines of a war they were forbidden to fight.

Guilt hung heavily upon Bastila's thoughts, not Revan's though. Revan slept as soundly as a child. The guilt Bastila felt was for not having joined in the war, not having followed the other Jedi. Perhaps her Battle Meditation could have made a difference, saved lives... perhaps the war didn't need to end the way it had, with the sacrifice of nearly all of the Jedi that had followed Revan over Malachor V, with the destruction of a once honorable people, with the death of hundreds of thousands of Republic soldiers in that one, terrible battle. She could feel what Revan had felt during those final moments over Malachor V, the hopelessness, the anger and in the end, the lack of feeling as he killed Mandalore the Ultimate and his own people, giving the Mandalorians an end that would be remembered forever. Few could forget the destruction of an entire world, of millions upon millions of lives. There had been so many dead and twisted bodies around Malachor V that the Republic hadn't even attempted to launch a recovery effort, instead wanting to use the world as a testament to the destruction a galaxy's beings could unleash upon one another. Until Revan had returned, at the head of an army bent on the destruction of the Republic they once served.

The wars bled together in Revan's memories, becoming a myriad of destruction, betrayal and death. The only constant in these memories was a clear hatred of the Jedi Order, disgust at their lack of commitment to protecting the Republic they served and resentment for ignoring the pleas of the "rogue' Jedi that followed Revan to war for aid. Revan never, in over a dozen meetings with the Jedi High Council through the war asked for anything. He only countered the Jedi's inaction with logic and resentful sarcasm, asking if it would be easier for them to defend a Republic that was made of corpses than living sentients.

"Couldn't sleep?"  
Bastila tensed but resisted the urge to start and turned to face her fellow Jedi. Kaera Nurr had grown a bit unpleasant in the days following Revan's recovery and the Knight's discovery of the man's identity but she'd stayed quiet, knowing how dangerous it would be for the others to know who Revan was. Pondering her response, Bastila sighed, nodding as she motioned for Kaera to join her. The two young women sat in silence for several moments, staring out through the window overlooking Taris' cityscape. It was an impressive sight at night but having seen what lurked below in the lower levels of the city, the sight merely brought a curl of disgust to Bastila's lips.

"Channeling your inner Revan?"

Kaera asked lightly, raising a brow at the sneer on her fellow Jedi's face. Bastila blinked, her face returning to a neutral, almost weary mask as she rubbed her eyes, groaning quietly.

"In more ways than one, Kaera. The bond between our minds is growing stronger and his memories are beginning to bleed through... only when he is asleep though... Only when he is asleep do I- am I given insight to his memories, to his thoughts..."

Kera took that moment to study Bastila, seeing the dark rings under the younger woman's eyes, the pale pallor of her skin and the hint of uncertainty in her gray eyes. It was a dangerous thought, but Kaera knew Revan had to have a purpose for what he'd done and perhaps Bastila was getting a front-row seat to the reason. Surely not a good thing considering the Republic, the Jedi needed the Padawan's Battle Meditation.

"He's awake."  
Bastila said quietly, almost looking relieved. Kaera frowned, turning to look into the apartment's common room and seeing a shadow moving silently towards them. The outline of a well-built and moderately tall man formed and Kaera knew even though she couldn't see his face he was frowning at the two of them.

"Plotting my demise, my dears?"  
Revan asked, his voice tired though he was fully alert. Kaera narrowed her eyes, prepared to return a barbed comment to Revan when Bastila beat her to it.

"How could either of us sleep knowing who and what _you_ are?"  
The worlds were laced with disgust and revulsion and Revan's face caught a hint of light, showing a bored expression, broken only by a slightly raised brow. Bastila stood slowly, groaning in weariness as she moved past Revan, ignoring him completely as she laid in the bed he had just vacated, unconscious within moments. Blinking in confusion and annoyance, Revan turned to Kaera, expecting yet another insult and receiving only a shake of the head as Kaera motioned him over. Annoyed but curious, Revan joined Kaera, looking over the same cityscape Bastila had moments before, a sneer of disgust on his face as he crossed his arms over his chest. Kaera eyed Revan, her eyes locked to his bare chest, carefully built, sculpted and maintained, almost like a work of art before she overcame the moment of weakness, looking at the Mandalorian tattoo on Revan's right bicep. It helped to clarify things.

"Are you familiar with Force-bonds?"  
Revan glanced at Kaera, silent a moment before answering with a simple nod as he focused his attention on the Jedi Knight. Kaera unconsciously crossed her arms defensively, not comfortable with being under Revan's gaze before she cast a glance to Bastila's unconscious form.

"Your thoughts... your memories are leaking through the bond you and Bastila share when you sleep, keeping her awake... surely you've noticed."

Revan's brow furrowed slightly as he tried to remember his dream, almost flinching when he thought of someone else having to sit through his nightmares as well. Still, he'd learned long ago not to dwell on painful memories. The past was the past, you learned from it and moved on, you didn't live in it. Others found that hard to accept and his dreams were... brutal to say the least.

"Were I not so busy shielding my aura from Malak I would have taken more of an effort to shield my thoughts from the Padawan... I have no wish to expose... to allow my enemy a glimpse of my mind. My reasons, my thoughts are my own and they shall remain so."

Revan grimaced slightly, as though a sour taste had entered his mouth. The deposed Dark Lord's brow furrowed slightly in confusion as he searched his thoughts, his mind for the leak in the barrier he'd created between the bond. It took the Dark Lord a moment to realize Kaera had said something and he rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"Come again?"  
Kaera resisted the urge to roll her own eyes, choosing instead to study Revan's reaction carefully.  
"I asked you why."

Revan rose a brow, silently studying Kaera as his face lost its expression.

"Why what, Kaera Nurr?"  
Sighing slightly, Kaera pressed on, knowing that Bastila had been ordered by the Council to watch Revan closely and decided to take some of the pressure off of her fellow Jedi.

"You know very well what I mean. Why did you betray us? Why do you hate us so... the Jedi- we're supposed to be a family, the only family we have..."  
Revan's face lacked emotion, a mask of stone and apathy etched on his sharp features as they turned from the Jedi to look once more over the Tarisian cityscape. For several minutes Kaera said nothing, waiting and staring at Revan. When the deposed Dark Lord failed to respond, Kaera sighed heavily, moving away from the window and took a seat in the middle of the apartment's main room, silently staring at Revan's form silhouetted against the distant lights of Taris' cityscape. He almost looked like a statue, pale and unmoving though his eyes flickered from time to time.

"Hate..."  
Revan whispered, more to himself than to Kaera. The Jedi Knight's brow furrowed, her eyes snapping to Revan's still form as he stared out over the world he'd _liberated_ years before.

"Malak is going to destroy this world... and soon. His patience is growing thin. Save your questions for another time, Jedi."

Revan moved past Kaera, collecting his tunic and cloak before exiting the apartment. Kaera frowned, wondering briefly why Revan would bypass his armor before she followed him, doing her best to keep her presence hidden so he would not discover her. The Jedi stalked the deposed Sith Lord for several miles before losing track of him completely and with a sigh, Kaera returned to the upper city apartment they had deemed their hideout.

Revan moved with measured steps into a Cantina, clad in a black tunic, leggings, boots and his cloak. Taking a seat at a pazaak table, Revan calmly removed his gloves and nodded to the other players. Losing himself in the game, the calculations he made and how he measured his opponents, Revan was brought back to his senses hours later with the rise of Taris' sun. The former Dark Lord collected his winnings, pocketing them and paused, his hand resting on his blaster as he stared at a green-skinned Twi'lek that had been watching him throughout his stay. Scanning the room quickly with his eyes, Revan moved from the cantina, taking his time to move across the walkway as he exchanged a glance with the Sith trooper standing guard at the doorway to the Cantina. The Sith soldier ignored Revan, content to wait out the rest of his shift while the former Sith Lord moved to the end of the walkway, pulling up his hood and using the shadows cast from the towering spires to mask his presence. The Force aided Revan slightly and he waited, watching his Twi'lek shadow move past the Cantina doorway and head to the only exit accessible to pedestrians. Moving with silent steps, Revan stalked the Twi'lek through the winding corridors of a tower to another walkway and moved to the Twi'lek's side, his pistol pressing against the green alien's spine.

"Keeping tabs on me?"  
Revan asked, his voice calm and flat. The Twi'lek tensed, but made no sign of fear or aggression as he turned his head to look at Revan, eyeing the human's face carefully before he slowly reached into his coat's pocket. Revan twisted the barrel of his pistol in the Twi'lek's spine as a warning and caught sight of a datapad the Twi'lek withdrew.

"My employer saw your... abilities at the recent Swoop Race and he may have need of your skills... You can meet him in the Lower City Cantina near the Hidden Bek base... He'll be there for some time but I wouldn't keep him waiting... Mandalorians aren't known for their patience."  
Revan slowly relaxed his grip on his pistol, removing it from the messenger's spine and nodding as he accepted the datapad. The Twi'lek moved on without a word, used to delivering such messages to violent and threatening individuals and disappeared into the crowds of the Tarisian walkway while Revan holstered his pistol, reading over the information on the datapad, the Mandalorian symbols scrolling along until he reached its end. Deleting the information, Revan tossed the datapad over the edge of the walkway and moved back towards the hideout, his thoughts more on grabbing his armor and a rifle than on reinforcements.

"I'm going with you."  
Bastila Shan's voice actually startled Revan and the deposed Sith Lord glanced towards the Padawan, frowning as he donned his armor and adjusted the straps, testing his range of movements before he grabbed a ridiculously overpowered blaster rifle. Better safe than dead.

"Keep your mouth closed and your eyes open."  
Revan ordered, his face set in a serious expression. Bastila's lip curled slightly in a sneer as her gray eyes flashed a challenge. Revan's expression remained unchanged, his eyes traveling over Bastila's features as he nodded to himself.

"Good... good. Never back down from a Mandalorian, Bastila Shan. It is a sign of weakness and any trained Mandalorian would take the opening it presents."  
Bastila's sneer fell away, replaced with a mockingly curious expression.

"Oh? I wasn't aware we were going to be dealing with anymore of your brutish race."

Revan ignored the verbal jab, checking his blaster rifle before motioning to the door. Bastila hastily grabbed her cloak, pulling the dark blue material over her armor as she followed Revan with a sigh, her eyes never leaving the former Dark Lord.

A meeting with one Canderous Ordo can have one of three results; Death, severe injury or the most preferable, a proposition. Given said proposition was a complex feat, Revan felt up for a challenge. Bastila, however had her doubts and made no small effort in letting Revan and Canderous know.

"I don't trust him or his plan... its too risky, we should find some other way off of Taris."  
Bastila's voice was quiet, though the statement was said in a commanding tone that left little room for argument. Canderous Ordo's lip curved into a sneer, his steel gray eyes narrowing a fraction as he glared at the Padawan.

"I wasn't talking to you, sister. I was talking to your friend here."  
Bastila's face reddened slightly and she opened her mouth to snap back when Revan raised a hand to silence her.

"I don't answer to _you._"

Bastila snapped at Revan's gesture, turning her attention back to Canderous before Revan sighed heavily, turning fully and standing between the Padawan and the Mandalorian.

"You followed me down here, not the other way around. Shut your mouth while we talk or you _won't_ walk away."  
A warning carried in Revan's eyes, making sure the Padawan knew the threat wasn't only from him and Bastila's eyes narrowed further if that were possible, the temperature seeming to drop around her, though she said nothing.

"Can you trust that one or do we have to get rid of her?"  
Canderous asked Revan quietly as he glared past the former Sith Lord. Revan shook his head immediately, knowing that while Bastila did not hear Canderous, she could sense she was in danger and sense that he knew as well through the bond.

"She makes up for her lack of manners in combat."  
Revan stated simply, watching as a light glinted in Canderous' hardened eyes. The older Mandalorian looked past Revan, his look appraising as he studied Bastila's form, seeing her well-maintained and toned muscle structure as well as her stance, telling him she knew how to handle herself. She hadn't backed down either. Chuckling, Canderous turned back to Revan, nodding his approval as he handed the deposed Sith Lord a datapad.

"Getting past the security lockdown won't be easy... but I have a solution to that. Davik had me place an order in for a droid that could handle the security measures. It should be ready, I scared the shopkeeper into getting it done fast."  
Revan quietly scanned the datapad, nodding his approval. He'd built a droid himself and knew the T3 model Canderous was having made would be able to hack any lock a standard Sith military base operated... unless someone in the High Command had grown a brain and replaced all the old, outdated countermeasures he had put in place years before.

"I'll be waiting here when you get those codes... Don't think of ratting me out, either of you or you won't like the results."  
Revan nodded, offering a simple Mandalorian salute that Canderous returned before he turned and left, Bastila eyeing Canderous warily before she followed Revan, having to half-jog to keep up with the former Sith Lord's long, quick strides. Revan could sense the Padawan's anger, though she did a fairly admirable job of trying to overcome it, he knew it was a long walk to the droid shop Canderous was having the T3 droid made at and that the Padawan trailing behind him wasn't the most patient of sentients.  
"If you ever, _ever_ speak to me like that again-"

Revan stopped completely, turning around and staring directly into Bastila's eyes.

"You almost blew it. You were drawing too much attention to us..."

Revan moved closer to Bastila, seeing her back away a step as she eyed him nervously.

"Body language is a tell, you've just told me and everyone who can see us now that you're uncomfortable in my presence. You were shaking your head too much when we were talking to Canderous, making too many signs... He's an Ordo, you're lucky you're still breathing right now."  
Bastila forced herself to stand her ground when Revan took another step closer, the former Dark Lord raising a hand slowly as he brushed a strand of hair that had fallen loose from her braid behind her ear, his eyes flickering upward and behind the Padawan before he smirked down at her, seeing she was trembling slightly.

"We've been followed, do exactly as I say."

Bastila nodded, feeling the proximity of Revan's very male body, the heat emanating from him and a smell that was purely masculine. It made her feel weak and slightly dazed, but at the same time powerful. A strong, gloved hand moved slowly to the small of her back, urging her gently forward and she nodded again to Revan's whispered words, her hands working to his waist as they quickly latched onto his pistol's grip. Revan's own hands were busy, his eyes concentrated completely on Bastila though he kept his attention on what was lurking on the edge of his peripherals, a Vulkar, carrying something even a Jedi would be wary fighting against.

"Now."  
Revan whispered, snapping Bastila from her daze, the Padawan took the former Sith Lord's weapon, turning as she fired a blind shot meant to distract more than kill. The Vulkar stalking the two humans hastily threw his device. Revan focused his concentration fully on the Force, creating a barrier to his and Bastila's energy while he reflected the Thermal Detonator back to its owner. Moving a step forward, Revan grabbed Bastila around the waist, turning as he pushed her behind an outcropping in the corridor, the former Sith Lord simply using the wall to push himself to the opposite side of the corridor to hide behind a similar outcropping. The entire process took close to three seconds and the Vulkar had time to mutter a startled curse before he was consumed in the detonation of the Thermal Detonator, the powerful blast traveling for dozens of meters down the hallway in both directions.

Revan and Bastila both broke from their cover at the same time, the former Sith Lord with a sneer as he patted out the flames on the edge of his cloak and the Padawan with a dazed expression on her face. The chemicals in the air from the Thermal Detonator must have been bothering her, not Revan's proximity, not that at all.

"Can't I go anywhere with you without someone trying to blow me up?"  
Revan grumbled towards Bastila, the Padawan starting slightly as she turned to look at him, spotting a shadow moving behind the former General. Revan felt the warning through the bond before it registered in the Force and he turned, throwing himself to the side as a blasterbolt was fired, then another. Bastila lowered Revan's blaster, her brow furrowed slightly in a troubled expression as she checked her surroundings for any more Vulkar assassins. Revan leaned against the opposite side of the corridor, his eyes closed and his jaw tensed as he clenched his teeth. The bond flared slightly, the tell of pain and Bastila's troubled expression grew more defined as she ceased her scan of their surroundings and concentrated fully on Revan.

"Are-"

The Padawan began, stopping when she spotted Revan with his hand closed tightly in a fist, crimson blood leaking from its clenched form.

"I'm fine. Lets get out of here."  
Revan stated cooly, pushing himself from the wall and moving at a slightly subdued pace towards the lift to the Upper City. Bastila followed, glancing over her shoulder a moment before she followed Revan's retreating form. The sound of cloth being torn drew the Padawan's attention to Revan and she frowned as she watched him hastily wrap his injured hand in a torn strip of black cloth from his tattered and scorched cloak.

_"I could have stopped it!"  
_A voice said with a distinct sneer in her mind and Bastila's eyes widened as she realized it was Revan, the former Dark Lord's self-reproach echoing across the bond before he could snuff it out. Revan opened and closed his hand, flinching slightly as he stared at his burned palm, knowing a hole would be burnt right through it if he were a Force-blind sentient. He'd begun gathering the Force in his palm to stop the blasterbolt when he realized the power he was giving off and backed off the technique, causing a nice bloody burn that hurt like all Hell. Though he'd felt worse... much worse. Being ambushed by an amateur was more annoying than the injury and Revan channeled a small amount of his power into healing while he watched the shadows along the corridor, searching for another ambush.

"So, one must ask... Why did you betray the Republic?"  
Bastila's casual demeanor to such a serious question caused Revan to slow his steps, an annoyed and distracted look crossing his face as he glanced over his shoulder to the woman trailing behind him. Revan kept walking, a muscle working in his jaw as he kept his attention focused in front of him, his brown eyes moving left to right, searching the path ahead.

"I normally wouldn't answer... or I'd give you some vague clues to take up your time but I'll just cut to the heart of the matter this time... only because its you."  
Bastila rolled her eyes, clearly unimpressed by Revan's statement. Revan did not notice or care and continued.

"I hate the Jedi... a great deal. I grew to hate them because I lost my faith in their ways, saw them as weak. Weakness is something a warrior... a protector even, should never deal with. It should be cut off and removed and as other things were growing more important to me... I decided to make my own way, show the Jedi how much I hated them by attacking their precious Republic. How fast did the Jedi run to the aide of the Republic when I attacked? How many years did it take for them to respond to the Mandalorians? Oh- right, they didn't. You ask why I betrayed the Republic? Because they were weak and I wished to make them strong. Why did I betray the Jedi? Because they betrayed me."

Bastila's face was set into a permanent frown, worry lines marring her youth as she focused her attention on Revan's backside, trying to discern the meaning and truth from the former Jedi Knight's words and finding, to her utter dismay that he was speaking the truth. Or he believed he was anyways.

"If that is the case... then- then why do you hate the Jedi?"  
Revan stopped, a frown marring his own young features as he eyed his surroundings before turning to the Padawan, locking his brown eyes to her gray and studying the young woman he saw in them, her potential and importance to his cause and if she were worthy of his respect. Silence filled the corridor, the sounds of the Tarisian Undercity fading to the background as Bastila and Revan stared into one another's eyes, the Padawan's imploring and the former Sith's thoughtful.

"The Jedi... made me weak... Made- Made me _care_. About laws, customs... mannerisms that were not my own, not my people's. They forced their beliefs upon me and I, like a fool believed in them until war opened my eyes."

Revan's face twisted slightly in disgust as he thought of when he'd cared as the Jedi had taught him for justice. When he'd spared the life of a despicable being out of a question of morality. He'd saved the Cathar girl from the slaver, but not soon enough and while he'd injured the beast grievously, he wanted to tear the despicable man apart, make it last for weeks as it had for Juhani. He'd ignored his heart and done what was "right" according to the Republic and the Jedi's laws and the man had been freed by Taris' corrupt government. Oh, he'd killed the Tarisian Nobles who'd been bribed and slowly to boot but he never managed to find the Twi'lek slaver afterwards.

"The galaxy is not a kind place, Bastila. It isn't a fair place either, no matter what the Republic or the Jedi tell you... You have to make your own rules, dispense your own justice if it is to be done. I merely went a step further than most would have in that regard."  
Throughout this, Bastila could sense, _see_ what Revan was thinking and shuddered slightly in disgust. Disgust focused on the slaver in Revan's mind, not the former Sith Lord himself.

"But- but why destroy worlds... countless innocents?"

Revan's brow rose slightly, as if he were surprised at the question.

"The Jedi have a... interesting view of the Force. They view it as sentient, as if it has a will of its own, a destiny that is set out... they are only partially correct. The Force is... a natural energy, there is nothing magical or supernatural about it. It exists as a tool a select few in the genetic mess this galaxy consists of can access. As with most things in nature, the Force seeks balance, constantly shifting between its polarities, its extremes as climates and magnetic fields do... The Force's are the Light and Dark sides."  
Revan allowed Bastila a moment to take in what he'd just said. A theory that pretty much blew away all of the Jedi Order's beliefs. One he'd seen work in practice and adapted to accordingly.

"Like water running down a hill, it can be diverted, tricked. So long as the end point is lower than whatever lies between, like water it can be harnessed, worked with. The Jedi only see this and base their beliefs, their religion if you will on it. However... The Force is not only actions, but intentions, thoughts, feelings. The Jedi repress their emotions, _releasing _them into the Force and adding to the water that flows downhill if you will. This energy continues on its path, overflowing at its end and collapsing backwards on itself, reversing its course. Do you see my point?"  
Bastila's frown remained, her blue-gray eyes narrowed in both annoyance and thought.

"The struggle between light and dark, but what does that have to do with-"  
Revan cut off Bastila's question with the answer to her previous question.

"As a force of nature, the darkside of the Force would exist, if not in an individual, in the environment. Rakgoul, Terantek... the worlds of Korriban and Malachor V... If it cannot be channeled somehow, it will spread. I am merely controlling where the darkness will rise, channeling it if you will. I suppose you could say if evil will not exist within, it will exist around."

Bastila sighed, seeing a strange logic in Revan's argument that was difficult to prove and disprove. It was infuriating to listen to the Mandalorian drone on about his theories so she asked her previous question.

"I asked why you would destroy a world, entire populations..."

Bastila's voice was quiet, hesitant and she stared into Revan's eyes, holding their dark gaze for longer than most dared before she swallowed, her throat feeling suddenly dry. With a casual tone that brought a tremor of disgust and at the same time, curiosity to the Padawan, Revan answered with a shrug of his shoulders.

"Why not?"

Bastila stared at Revan as if he'd grown an extra head.

"You do know that- that basing genocide on a- an arguable theory is... well one could call you a madman."

Bastila's voice was quiet, a look on her face showing that she was just now realizing Revan could be mentally unstable, perhaps a maniac. Revan chose to ignore the look, instead checking their surroundings once more as he opened and closed his injured hand unconsciously. A Jedi... anyone who hadn't seen how the Galaxy really worked, how it existed beyond the rim of the Republic would never understand what he meant. The Force moved, invisible between all things and left behind a wake. It had more in common with water than he'd let on. A user could literally drown in the power of the Force if they took too much of it upon themselves, destroying their bodies with its power, whether it be light or dark. The darkside merely had a much more apparent effect, destroying its user from the outside instead of from the inside. Well, perhaps not, his theory was still only that but he'd seen enough of the galaxy, enough of the Force and enough of darkness to know it would exist outside of you, even if you resisted its call. He'd never believed in the higher calling the Force held for many Jedi, merely saw it as a tool, an extension of his strength. If the Force was with him, it was flowing in the direction of his actions, just as it would work against him if he reversed his actions. A man, a warrior could only believe in their own strength, or they risk being betrayed, abandoned.

"I'll just assume you've gone stark-raving mad, then."  
Bastila decided, seeing that Revan's thoughts were focused elsewhere. She refused to show it, even dare think it but when he looked thoughtful it terrified her. He looked as if he were measuring her value, calculating if she were needed or not and she didn't want to think of what he would do if he grew weary of her connection with him or saw her as a hindrance. Not that Revan seeing her as useful in any of whatever insane plans he held was a comforting thought to the Padawan, but neither was being dead and while she tried not to, she did fear death.

"Lets get this over with, my dear. I can only kill so many men in one day before my hands start to hurt."  
Revan smirked at the Padawan, breaking the uncomfortable air between the two humans as Bastila's troubled frown turned to a full-blown scowl, disdain coloring her features.

"Yes, I'm so bloody concerned for your hands. You really are just a bloodthirsty barbarian aren't you?"  
Revan shrugged noncommitally, glancing down a side corridor and taking a step back, almost knocking Bastila over as she collided with his back.

"What the devil are-"

A blasterbolt struck the wall adjacent to them and Revan sighed, glancing over his shoulder and staring meaningfully at Bastila and then her hand, where his blaster pistol still remained from the previous firefight. Bastila frowned at Revan, her eyes widening slightly as she handed over the pistol, pulling the blaster rifle they'd taken with them from her shoulder and holding it at the ready as she crouched, checking behind her in case an ambusher chose that moment to strike for their backs. Revan took the pistol in his right hand, curling his injured left into a fist as he took in a calming breath, closing his eyes and letting the breath out slowly. Breaking from his cover, Revan came face to face with a hulking Iridonian's surprised countenance. The Vulkar's surprise turned to shocked pain as Revan fired his pistol, point blank into the man's head, killing him instantly. As the body dropped, Revan reached out, grasping the dead Iridonian's collar with his injured hand and winced as his burn protested. Half a dozen blasterbolts hit the dead Iridonian instead of their target and Revan held the body upright, his right forearm resting on the dead Iridonian's shoulder to stabilize his shots as he shot each of the other attacking Vulkars calmly and in turn, each in the head before Bastila could even react.

"Lets go."  
Revan ordered as he dropped the Iridonian's corpse to the ground, not bothering to take in Bastila's surprised and slightly disturbed look. He'd just casually killed four beings. Casually when one had nearly killed him and it bothered Bastila to see how easily Revan could brush aside such a threat. She'd almost expected him to unleash some disturbing display of barbaric violence upon the other Vulkars but his kills were quick and clean, almost mechanical. A reaction of a trained killer, she realized as she followed closely, keeping her attention divided between what was technically her charge and her surroundings. It wouldn't do to get shot because she was too busy glaring at Revan's back.

The Twi'lek shopkeeper, Janice Nall was easily dealt with through threats, though Bastila cut Revan's fun short by paying the Twi'lek a fair amount for the T3-M4 droid that trailed behind them at a sedate pace, beeping happily as it moved to complete its only programmed function. Breaking and entering. Revan ignored the glare from the Padawan for a few minutes before he returned it with one of his own.

"Need I remind you it was my credits you just spent?"  
Revan asked cooly, seeing Bastila's face flush slightly. Whether it was embarrassment or anger he didn't know as he glanced over his shoulder at the droid slicing into the sealed doorway to the Sith base. Security really was pathetic on Taris but he supposed most of the soldiers were on the street looking for Bastila and the last thing they'd expect would be her to come to them.

"Is it necessary to act as some common thug in everything you do? Are you trying to draw attention to us or do you just enjoy cruelty-"  
Seeing Revan's smirk, Bastila rolled her eyes in annoyance.

"Don't answer that."  
Revan's smirk remained as he turned, stepping through the doors the moment they opened before turning and giving a half-bow to Bastila as they closed. Bastila quickly jumped through the closing doors, frowning down at the little T3 droid and wondering how it had managed to get in so quickly.

"Let me do the talking."  
Revan stated, holstering his pistol and straightening his burnt and tattered cloak. He looked more like a Dark Jedi at that moment than anything and Bastila opened her mouth to question his actions when she caught him reaching behind his back and removing a small lightsaber from the base of his armor. Revan calmly strapped the saber to his belt, in plain sight of anyone to see and nodded to Bastila to do the same. The Padawan's brow furrowed in both annoyance and surprise as she did the same to her own saber. The lift came to a halt soon after and the doors opened to reveal a fairly large room with several security cameras and turrets that tracked them as they moved to the room's sole occupant, a Twi'lek secretary that was likely deemed "disposable" by the hierarchy.

Darth Malak narrowed his eyes a fraction, the blue-green gem of Taris hanging in the blackness of space before his flagship. Skin, pale and gray twitched as his yellow eyes narrowed, the rim of red from both sleep deprivation and the destructive powers of the Darkside shifting as it moved to a single location. A frown would have adorned the Dark Lord's features had they been whole and he stared silently at where the Sith's central military base was located on Taris, a familiar and foreboding life-force reaching his senses as it used a little more power than was necessary.

"You summoned me, Lord Malak?"  
Malak did not bother turning, eyes still locked on to where he'd sensed... something impossible. He'd felt Revan becoming one with the Force, felt him die. It was impossible.

"The search for Bastila is taking too long... We cannot risk her escaping Taris. Destroy the entire planet."

Admiral Saul Karath's eyes widened slightly. He'd thought the days of destroying worlds was left behind with Revan's death.

"The- the entire planet, Lord Malak? But... There are billions of people on Taris, we'd be slaughtering countless innocent civilians. Not to mention our own men still on the surface..."  
Malak's shoulders tensed and Saul Karath swallowed as he locked eyes with two golden pools of malice. He hadn't protested the destruction of his own homeworld but... since Revan's death the war seemed more... like a waste rather than a crusade.

"Your predecessor once made the mistake of questioning my orders, Admiral. Surely you are not so foolish as to make the same mistake?"  
Saul know he was looking his own death in the face if he said nothing else and he raised his hands in a placating gesture, offering a compromise that wouldn't completely destroy his pride.

"Of- of course Lord Malak but it will take several hours to position our fleet."  
Malak glared down at the weakling before him, wondering why he kept him alive as he turned.

"Then I suggest you begin immediately. You are dismissed, Admiral."  
Malak's mechanical voice left no room for argument and Saul lowered his head, mumbling out an affirmation as he moved to a nearby communications console to relay the orders to the fleet. He'd had his chance to protest, when the Sith had come for his own homeworld and he'd made his decision then, for all the good it had done his own family on Taris.

Revan, former Dark Lord of the Sith moved with practiced ease through the Sith's command base on Taris, his masquerade as a Dark Jedi working to his advantage and getting him in the presence of the Sith's local governor without any obstacles.

"Governor?"  
The bald Dark Jedi that acted as the Sith's local governor for Taris nodding his head in greeting to the two Dark Jedi before him. Revan eyed the interior of the office, striding closely to the Sith Governor, his lightsaber moving to his hand in a fluid motion as it snapped to life, meeting the hasty block of the Sith's vibroblade.

"What is this! Impostors! Jedi spies!"  
Revan rolled his eyes, his saber rising to deflect a counterstrike with such ease that it surprised his counterpart. Bastila scowled as she activated her own lightsaber, moving to the right of Revan and waiting for an opportune moment to strike. She'd expected the deposed Sith Lord to be rusty, out of form but he'd obviously been keeping in practice with the Jedi arts. An outburst of Force energy from the Sith Governor pushed Revan back, the former Dark Lord's face showing a bit of surprise before he realized he'd been masking his power from Malak, making himself weaker than he needed to be. Bastila chose that moment to strike, her lightsaber's golden blade snapping to life and bisecting the path of the Sith's vibrosword.

"Perhaps my master will reward me with a lightsaber when I present him your heads!"  
Revan stood back, his eyes two pools of golden light as he fought with his own rage. He wanted to rip the impudent Sith apprentice before him apart, suck the very life and energy from him until he knew just who he was dealing with and just how outclassed he was. Still, Revan maintained his control, keeping a tight barrier on his power, though a minute amount slipped out when he channeled the energy into his body, joining in with Bastila to cut off the Sith's escape route. Bastila struck low, knowing Revan's superior strength and height would give him the advantage and she saw her opportunity when the Sith raised his blade to deflect Revan's crimson saber. A groan came from the Sith governor as he dropped to his knees, holding his abdomen where Bastila had struck, imbedding her golden blade before she pulled back, watching the Sith as he knelt, mortally wounded. Despite the dangers, despite the logic of finishing off the Sith, the Padawan couldn't bring herself to kill a defenseless opponent. Revan didn't seem to have the same hindrance as he lowered his crimson blade to the Sith's throat, the Sith's shocked and pained expression melting away to one of open defiance as he met the eyes of his death with his own.

"Are you going to die on your knees, or your feet?"  
Revan's voice carried a hint of the Force with it, anger brimming in his eyes as he kept his blade steady. The Sith's eyes widened, placing the voice and the phrase spoken with one Revan had told each of the Sith he'd personally trained.  
"Lor- Milord!"  
Revan kept his eyes locked with the Sith's, letting the other know he was a dead man and he could die with honor or die like a coward. The Sith struggled, biting down on the inside of his cheek as he stood shakily, offering a simple bow of his head as Revan swiped his blade cleanly across the Sith's neck, decapitating the young human. Revan wasted no time, kneeling beside the corpse and pulling out a small datachip from the Sith's belt he deactivated and replaced his lightsaber, pulling out a datapad and inserting the chip. Revan's eyes scanned the datapad, his brow furrowing as he glanced down at Bastila's still active saber as it moved to his throat.

"Something I miss, Bastila?"  
Revan asked, raising a brow as he slowly stood, his eyes flickering as they studied the Padawan's stance, looking for a weakness. Spotting one, Revan prepared to strike, ready to disarm Bastila before she frowned, shifting her stance accordingly with the thought she felt flickering across the bond. Revan sighed, rolling his eyes as he slowly removed the lightsaber he'd kept since the _Endar Spire's_ destruction and held it out to the Padawan. Bastila reached forward warily, taking the weapon from Revan and backing away as Revan stood, casting an annoyed glare at the Padawan as she narrowed her blue-gray eyes.

"Are you telling me you've had this weapon the _entire_ time you've been on Taris?"  
Revan's glare shifted as he smirked, shifting his shoulders and letting out a sigh.

"Would have been pretty high profile to be waving a lightsaber around, I think."  
Bastila's face turned red as she hid Revan's saber in her armor, doing the same to her own as she glared at the deposed Sith Lord.

"You understand of course I cannot allow you to carry the weapon of a Jedi."  
Bastila rose her head slightly, squaring her shoulders as she looked down her nose at Revan, awaiting his response. Revan shrugged indifferently, knowing he'd get the weapon back one way or the other as he looked down at his belt, resting his hand on his blaster pistol.

"You understand of course I may be asking for it back. Soon."  
Bastila's slightly superior expression melted as she narrowed her eyes at Revan.

"I think I'll be the judge of whether you should be armed with a lightsaber or not!"  
Revan ignored Bastila's glare, moving to the lift and holding the door for the Padawan. Bastila opened her mouth to thank Revan for holding the lift before she remembered who she was talking to and where they were and she simply glared at the Mandalorian. The Padawan felt as though part of her armor was loose and glanced down, frowning as she adjusted the strap. She barely caught Revan twirling his lightsaber in his hand as he smirked at her.

"Unless you want to kill me... which I think you would have done on my flagship if you really wanted me dead, you can't keep this weapon from me."  
Indignant, and a little impressed by Revan's brief display, Bastila lowered her hand to where her own saber was hidden, her hand closing on nothing as Revan moving his left hand from behind his back, revealing the Padawan's saber.

"You should really try holding on to this."

Revan tossed the annoyed Padawan her weapon, his smirk vanishing as a blank expression replaced it. Bastila kept her eyes locked with Revan's as she caught her weapon, narrowing them a fraction at the former Sith Lord's change in demeanor.

"Lets get these codes back to Canderous and see how he plans to get us, _all_ of us off of Taris."

Author's Notes: Well that was a long time coming. I'd like to apologize to all my readers for the ridiculous break between chapters. Rest assured I am still writing this story... though very slowly. School and a hefty case of writer's block hindered me a bit there but I hope to get back on track with this story soon enough. (I'm so sick of reading LSF Revan fics!)


	17. Chapter 16: An Exchange of Hands

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"Why destroy Telos? Fear, Malak. Fear will keep them divided, scattered and weak. Fear will keep them from uniting against us before we are prepared, before we have enough of our own men and ships... While they argue amongst themselves, scattering their forces; we will strike their heart, cutting apart the strongest of their numbers, the greatest of their resolve. The heart of the Republic is not Coruscant, my apprentice but the false sense of security it brings to its worlds. When that sense of security dies, when they see what we can do they will understand why it is we do this, why we try to make them stronger by removing their strength. They will join us then, Malak. They will join us or die... for we are the strong and the Republic, the Jedi are the weak. The strong survive and the weak perish, it is the way of things..."_

_Darth Revan to Darth Malak in regards to the bombardment of Telos IV_

Chapter 16: An Exchange of Hands

Revan, former Lord of the Sith knelt beside the edge of a rooftop, peering through narrowed eyes at the Sith soldiers that rushed from the entrance of the Sith command base he and Bastila had just vacated. Behind him, the young Padawan pulled the edges of her cloak around her, Revan's pistol in her hand as she watched the man's movements. Revan rose his blaster rifle, taking aim through its scope as he tracked the Sith, a frown firmly on his face.

"Evacuation procedures. They're not following us... they're clearing out anything of value."  
Bastila's brow furrowed, her eyes flickering from Revan's back to the activity below. The Sith soldiers were loading transports with supplies and personnel, the loading craft rising as soon as they were full and vanishing in the blue sky overhead. Revan lowered the rifle's scope from his eye, his frown still in place as he rubbed his beard thoughtfully.

"He's actually going to bloody do it."  
Revan shook his head, his eyes moving upwards as he searched through the Force, seeking Malak's presence. It didn't take long and the former Sith Lord narrowed his eyes thoughtfully, nearly breaking the arm of the person who tapped his shoulder. Regaining his calm, Revan glanced over his shoulder at Bastila, raising a brow silently as he had missed her question. Rolling her eyes the Padawan repeated her question, her expression more annoyed than worried.

"I asked you who _he _is and what _he_ is going to bloody do!"

Bastila started slightly at the loudness of her voice, her annoyance at Revan drawing out her control and she took in a steadying breath to calm herself while Revan frowned at her, contemplating his response.

"Malak is going to... go to extremes to make certain you remain outside of the war effort. We have to get off-world. Fast."  
Bastila frowned, her eyes widening when she caught the implication in Revan's words. Behind her, T3-M4 gave out a forlorn beep, its head swiveling as it tracked a Sith transport on its scopes. Revan held Bastila's gaze, a frown of confusion on his face. He actually felt a little bad for the girl, the knowledge that an entire planet's destruction would be on her conscience, he figured she still had one since she had saved him, useless things. Not knowing what to say and not entirely sure he cared enough, Revan turned his attention back on the Sith, his brow furrowing as he pondered the situation.

"T3-M4, go to these coordinates and warn the others to get ready to make a hasty departure, have them gather at these coordinates in precisely two hours."  
Revan entered the coordinates for the hideout they'd been using in the Upper City in T3's memory core before entering a new set of coordinates, a landing pad that was hidden in an old Mandalorian military base that was secure enough to withstand a light bombardment but abandoned since his people had been driven from Taris years before.

"We've got two hours to get to Canderous, get that ship he was talking about and get off Taris. Evacuation procedures for hardware and intelligence usually takes a half hour, then another half hour to get any important personnel off-world. The Sith are going to hit Taris, and hard in an hour. They'll probably start by destroying any viable and active spaceports before moving to... civilian sectors."  
Revan pulled the rifle over his shoulder, securing its strap before leaping over the edge of the rooftop and to a walkway below. Bastila stood in place a moment, frowning as she pondered exactly what Revan was telling her. The Padawan followed the Dark Lord at a sedate pace, her gray eyes troubled as they flickered to the sentients crowding the streets of Taris. Coming to a stop, Bastila closed her eyes, trying to calm her breath as a group of small children ran past her, playing on the walkway in the mid-day sun. Malak was going to destroy Taris... there had to be someway to stop him, maybe- maybe if she turned herself over to the Sith, maybe then he'd stay his hand.   
"I- I have to go back, I have to- to turn myself-"  
Revan was beside her in an instant as she turned towards the Sith base, his left hand locked tightly on her right arm as he moved, forcing her to match his fast steps.

"Taris will be destroyed, whether you turn yourself over or not. He'd just laugh in your face as he'd make you watch its destruction, then he'd torture you with all of those deaths until you no longer care about them, until you become like him."  
Bastila started at the voice, turning her head as she struggled to keep up with the fast pace Revan had set. The older human's face looked troubled, angered slightly but she could see a complete lack of care regarding the millions, billions around them. Revan's concern was focused inward, at his own fate and she struggled to pull her arm free, sneering at the former Sith Lord.

"You may not care what happens to these people but _I_ do. I won't- I won't allow my presence to be a danger to them, I-"  
Revan turned, locking eyes with Bastila.

"Malak will destroy Taris, whether you are here or not. Even if you turn yourself over he will destroy it to destroy your will. If you flee and escape and he learns of it he will destroy the world in spite of you. It is what I would do and I trained Malak well. The only option that will work in _our_ favor is to escape, to deny Malak the prize he seeks. Even if he can't turn you, denying the Republic your Battle Meditation will be all he needs to win this war. There are other worlds, Bastila. Other people he will slaughter if he's not stopped."  
Bastila continued trying to free her arm from Revan's impossibly tight grasp, pulling free when Revan relented, his eyes moving to a nearby lift that would carry them to the Lower City.

"None of this would even be happening if it weren't for _you_."  
Bastila's voice was a quiet hiss and she narrowed her eyes venomously at Revan, the reason for the war and the Sith and everything wrong. Revan met her narrowed gaze with a blank expression, his brow pinched slightly as he thought of how he could let the Padawan see reason, see that now was not the time to point fingers, now was the time for action. They needed to move, and fast or they'd be as dead as everyone else on Taris in a few hours. Revan was surprised when Bastila sighed, backing away from him as her shoulders slumped quietly in defeat. Her face was etched with a pained, sorrowful expression and she could not meet his eyes as she spoke.

"I- that was- was not called for. I am a Jedi and- and I should not-"  
Revan stared blankly at the Padawan, wondering if she were suffering some moral dilemma the Jedi had never trained her for. He recognized the signs, anger, denial, guilt. All emotions the Jedi told you to release to the Force. He'd tried before and failed and he was impressed the Padawan even made the effort. His only consolation at the time was hacking fellow Mandalorians to pieces and she seemed to take comfort from something else. The bond that had formed between the two flickered briefly, filling the Padawan with a sense of purpose beyond surviving and she knew briefly what Revan knew. Knew that he'd once suffered as she had and had moved on, in the worst way. Resolving not to become a monster, not to become evil, Bastila fought off her anger, her resentment and her fear as she took in a calming breath, the Jedi Code echoing in her mind as she closed her eyes, a silent tear falling down her cheek as she thought of all the lives about to be lost to the Sith. Revan was right, she knew. There was nothing that could be done of it, nothing that could be done in time anyways and she had to concentrate on the here and the now, not dwell on the what ifs.

"We- we should get to Canderous... get off of this world and find some refuge..."  
Revan rose a brow, impressed. His respect of the Padawan had just gone from tolerant to admiring. She'd just overcome a major emotional barrier without pointless violence, well, much violence. Straightening her posture, though her face was still etched in a pained expression, Bastila moved ahead of Revan, her steps quick and precise as she moved to the lift. Revan crossed his arms, glancing to his left and spotted an unattended speeder. The craft was worn, probably a survivor of pre-war Taris and the Dark Lord noticed easily hacked.

"I don't feel like running all that way, come on, Bastila."  
Bastila froze, turning and frowning at Revan as he casually moved into the parked speeder, his hands moving so quickly behind the control console that she could barely track it before the speeder's engine started. Her first instinct was to protest stealing someone else's property but catching a flicker of uncertainty in Revan's eyes she frowned, tracing a small tendril in her mind that linked hers to Revan's. Concern crowded most of Revan's mind, whether it was for himself or something else she could not tell, she could only tell he was nervous.

"Malak is not a patient man..."  
Revan stated simply, breaking away from the walkway and diving the speeder down one of the gaping chasms between the towers marking Taris' upper city. Revan narrowed his eyes against the wind blowing against them, walkways and pipelines blocked the way but the Force and a lifetime of training heightened his senses as he dodged between the obstacles, narrowly avoiding a Sith speeder bike patrol that tried chasing him for a few kilometers. Revan frowned as he banked tightly between a building and an ancient support column, slowing the speeder and pulling it alongside a walkway. Revan jumped from the side of the speeder, offering a hand to Bastila which the Padawan took with a slightly dazed expression as she stumbled slightly, regaining her balance. Revan moved swiftly towards the cantina Canderous waited in, his hands opening and closing anxiously as he glanced from left to right, watching for any threats while trying to keep a reasonably swift pace. Bastila followed slowly, looking slightly green though she kept her face neutral. No vehicle without inertial dampeners had any right to move as fast as they'd been going and she doubted seriously that any of the Sith that had tried to follow them would have survived a sustained chase.

"Keep sharp, Bastila. We haven't got the time to be careful."  
Bastila nodded automatically in agreement with Revan, her hand moving to her lightsaber and her eyes scanning their surroundings warily as she half-jogged to match Revan's long strides. Revan did not even bother listening to the cantina's bouncer's warning as he moved to the entrance, locked eyes with Canderous as the other Mandalorian stood and nodded once. Canderous returned the nod, tossed a few credits on the table for his drink and moved to Revan's side, raising a brow at Bastila as he passed her, moving slowly towards Davik's estate.

"I take it there's a reason for this."  
Canderous muttered, knowing there had been a break in at the Sith's main base and that the Sith's Governor was dead. Revan's face was set in an emotionless mask as he stepped around a figure huddled in the street, wrapped in rags. Likely a refugee from the Mandalorian wars that couldn't afford to get off Taris and not his concern at that point. At that point, survival was his concern.

"The Sith began evacuating their high-ranking personnel and moving supplies off-world shortly after we left the base. I'm sure this is ringing a bell."  
Canderous chuckled, nodding as he sneered at his surroundings.

"Someone is gonna light a fire under this world's ass."  
Revan reflected Canderous' sneer, disgusted by the conditions around him, the weakness.

"About damn time."  
Bastila trailed behind the two Mandalorians, appalled and slightly startled at how well Revan and the older Mandalorian reacted to one another. It was like they were old friends, comrades in arms and she frowned as she remembered the tattoo on Revan's bicep, his origins and the unpleasant and emotionless attitude he held. A stereotypical Mandalorian, though Revan was well-built, his build was smaller than the burly and brutish appearance of Canderous and many other Mandalorians. She realized he was bulkier, more muscled than other Jedi and Sith as well and the Padawan made the comparison of a combination, a blending of Mandalorian and Jedi physical features. The roots of Revan were so glaringly obvious, Bastila wondered how so few knew of his Mandalorian origins. His appearance as Darth Revan, the combination of robes and heavy armor considered too encumbering for most Jedi to wear was almost a perfect blend of Jedi and Mandalore. Still, she couldn't help but notice how small he looked compared to Canderous Ordo's hulking form and she wondered briefly how much of his mind set reflected his Mandalorian origins. Many amongst the Council drew the comparison of Revan, Malak and the Mandalorians, how the violence of the war had twisted Revan's and Malak's views, growing from acceptance and protection of the weak, to disgust and domination. It was poetic to say they'd become the monsters they fought but Bastila wondered if the monsters had always existed, hidden beneath falsehoods and seemingly good intentions.

_"These are dangerous thoughts..."_

Bastila mentally chastised herself, straightening her shoulders as she resolved to not draw too deeply on her assumptions. She only knew Canderous by his reaction to her, hostile and blunt but she could sense something else in the old Mandalorian, something that perhaps even he didn't know existed within. A conscience, though it was not apparent to her or even Revan at that point. She could only tell that he was important in some way.

"Davik has been looking for recruits to do the same work the current mercenaries he hired are doing but for less. I can get you and your... _friend_ here inside, then we can steal Davik's passcodes and get off this world."  
Revan nodded, feeling the bond flare slightly as Bastila glared at his and Canderous' backs, not entirely certain what Canderous had meant by _friend_ but knowing she didn't like the implication.

"We have some... companions I wish to pick up before we leave. They're important."  
Canderous nodded his understanding, turning his head to glare at a Vulkar that caught one look at who was standing beside Revan and Bastila and backed off. Canderous had a hard-earned reputation and while going against the duo that had wiped out their leadership brought with it a high probability of death, the Vulkars knew going against Canderous Ordo brought the certainty of death.

"Davik likes to think of himself as a noble, royalty. He's got an ego that would give some of your Jedi friend's Republic Admirals a run for their money."  
Bastila tensed, her eyes moving from the retreating Vulkar to Canderous' back. She should have know the Mandalorian, a mercenary at that would know who she was but it hadn't occurred to her that he wouldn't act if he did know.

"How long have you known who I am?"  
Canderous rose a brow, turning to glance over his shoulder at the Jedi Padawan trailing after him with a bored expression.

"Sister if I wanted credits I'd be working with the Sith. Thing is... this isn't about your Republic or your Jedi or the War... its about honor. We Mandalorians liked Revan's style... Revan was a true warrior. How Malak took that leadership was cowardly and those of us who remember our honor would never side with anyone who would betray a warrior who bested Mandalore and didn't have the courage to betray him to his face."

Canderous said nothing more and kept walking while Revan's features grew darker, shadowed by his own opinion over the matter. Malak was no coward, he just didn't think like a Mandalorian. Part of the reason he couldn't deal with what they were doing to their own worlds without succumbing to the darkness. He was too soft, he still cared about innocent life. In the grand scale of things caring only distracted and hindered you. The Mandalorians knew this and taught their warriors not to hate or fear their enemies but respect them; to honor the dead, not mourn them. Revenge was an alien concept to a Mandalorian, they only believed in defending their honor, not making a foe suffer. Until Cathar, when they'd forgotten their honor in favor of hatred, of revenge. Cathar was their greatest mistake as a people. It gave their enemies, even some of their own, even Revan cause to hate them.

"What honor is there in killing those who cannot defend themselves?"  
Bastila's voice was soft but both Mandalorians heard it and both scowled, their hands tightening into fists. Canderous glanced over to Revan, silently asking if he wanted to do the talking to which Revan shook his head, his mind focused more on the feeling behind Bastila's statement than her words. He could remember that feeling, vaguely.

"If you're not willing to fight for your life, you have no right to it."

Bastila glared at Canderous' back, then Revan's as she gathered her indignation, her anger into a cutting statement.

"How are children able to defend themselves?"  
Revan's eyes lost focus for a moment, the memory of a young Cathar girl foremost in his mind for a moment before he shook off his thoughts, remembering a group of Mandalorian _children_ that had killed two of his best units and nearly killed General Kenobi because she hadn't deemed them a threat. He'd been angry that Kenobi had gotten two Republic Black Ops teams killed before he took care of the problem himself. He had no issue fighting and killing those children, he'd done them a favor by making it quick. The other Republic soldiers would have been looking for revenge, since most of Kenobi's units were Iridonian and... prone to violent behavior. He'd spared both sides the trouble.  
"Quite well actually..."  
Revan muttered, grimacing at the memory of just how many of the Mandalorians he had fought were women and children. The mind set of the Republic had skewed his view of children and he'd still viewed Juhani as a child when he'd rescued her on Taris. A Mandalorian, a true Mandalorian would have seen an adult and anyone younger would have been seen only as an unfortunate spoil of war, to be used in their slave armies and trained as their own or left to suffer the same fate as those who would hide amongst them. Canderous looked troubled a moment at Bastila's words, barely catching Revan's response before he shook his head in annoyance. He'd done too much killing in his life to give a damn what the Jedi thought. Let her think what she wanted, she wasn't one of his people and she had no right to judge him, though the Bloodraven's reaction to the Jedi woman was bothering him. It gave him focus though, took his mind off what he'd done and set him on track to ponder what he was going to do. He was going to rip out Davik's entrails for not honoring their agreement then he was going to get off Taris and somewhere more challenging. A Jedi traveling with one of his kind could obviously deliver him a challenge to test himself against.

Kaera Nurr frowned down at the tiny T3 Astromech droid that beeped happily at Mission as the Twi'lek worked on its chassis, cleaning some of the grime left behind from the droid's brief journey from the Sith base to their hideout. If what the droid said was true, she and the others were in grave danger and at the mercy of Revan. Apparently Bastila was alone with another of Revan's brutish race and the only guarantee she had that the former Sith Lord wouldn't leave them all to die with Taris was the coordinates the droid had given them. Frowning deeply, Kaera narrowed her eyes at the droid before giving an order.

"We should get anything important and move, there's no telling how long the others can wait for us before they're discovered..."  
Kaera didn't quite have the heart, or lack thereof to tell Mission what was really going on but she could tell from the pinched, pained expression in Carth's face that he knew what was happening and the constant growling of the Wookiee gave her a bit of insight into Zalbaar's knowledge of the situation. The others quickly gathered their weapons and supplies, moving through the apartment, quickly and quietly covering the distance between the hideout and the abandoned Mandalorian base within an hour. Kaera eyed the structure with a raised brow, surprised such a facility would be abandoned. Still, a reinforced structure and armored plating only did so much against orbital bombardment. Moving away from the others, Kaera inspected the facility critically, a frown firmly in place as she saw damage along the walls consistent with lightsaber scoring. The air in the base seemed stale, and she nearly gave in to the urge to let out a startled scream when she found a rotting body of a fully armed and armored Mandalorian, a clean and precise hole burned through a gap in the armored plating that had claimed the warrior's life. Other bodies littered the area, the corpses of the Mandalorian invaders laying where they fell, rotting away in the dark, abandoned base.

"He's left us here to die..."  
It was too late, Kaera knew, to find another hideout. Too late to find another transport to get off-world. The only hope she and her companions had to get off of Taris alive was Bastila. She had to hope that Bastila could overcome a seasoned Mandalorian warrior and a deposed Sith Lord on her own, or theirs would be added to the corpses of the base. Perhaps the bodies were a kind of sick joke on Revan's part, showing her specifically that he had no problems leaving people behind. He was the harbinger of death for his own race, so the possibility wasn't a far stretch of Kaera's imagination.

"That bastard left us here to die!"  
Carth Onasi wasn't normally one to take things at face value and the Mandalorian base they were in at the time as well as the word of Tauryn Katarn weren't exceptions. He had spotted Kaera curiously looking over the ruins of the old Mandalorian base with a critical eye and followed once Mission, Zalbaar and the droid were settled in. There were too many shadows for his liking, too many places for people to hide and ambush him but he ignored the growing tension in his gut, his brown eyes twitching slightly as he spotted a Mandalorian corpse, then another. He knew enough about Mandalorian culture to know they didn't particularly go to great efforts to recover their dead, some twisted sense of honor compelling them to leave the dead where they'd fallen, as a testament to their glory in battle. Years of exposure and decay had left little but mummified husks within the armor, but the armor remained and Carth stepped around them, sighing as he spotted Kaera. He'd heard about this base from some of his fellow soldiers, heard about how Revan and twenty other Jedi had wiped out a thousand Mandalorians within a few hours, after the Mandalorians had held the base for days and against wave after wave of Republic assaults. Nothing short of an orbital bombardment or a tactical nuke would have destroyed the base and he stepped around the bodies, barely hearing Kaera's exclamation.

"What do you mean?"  
Carth asked, startling Kaera. The Jedi stared at Carth silently a moment before she came to a decision, not really wanting to deny the man the truth about their companion in what could very well be their final moments alive.

"Carth there- there's something I need to tell you about Tauryn... Something that is privileged knowledge and known only to myself, Padawan Shan and the Jedi Council."

Carth crossed his arms, frowning at the Jedi as he realized life was about to get a lot more complicated.

"He- Well... I suppose I'll just say it, Tauryn Katarn is actually Darth Revan. He was captured after the assault on his flagship by Bastila and the Council attempted to... re-educate him. It failed and he went to ground, resurfacing here on Taris. The Council believed him to no longer be a threat... no longer be himself. His mind was... damaged during his capture and they never thought he would recover his identity, that he would remember who he was..."  
Carth frowned, his first response denial. How could a Mandalorian be Darth Revan- oh. Revan's betrayal of the Republic suddenly made a Hell of a lot more sense. The Mandalorian people had been brought to the brink of extinction by the close of the war and most of the armies fighting with the Republic, the Iridonians in particular were not exactly... humane in their treatment of captured Mandalorians. He supposed he'd go a little insane himself if he were responsible for the destruction of his own people, but understanding was a little hard to grasp with the anger he felt at being lied to, constantly. Revan had orchestrated a great deal of deceit, doing who knew what while he slept or stayed back at the base and tried to figure out how to save Bastila and get off-world. Someone with Revan's abilities would have had Bastila within hours rather than days and he realized the implications immediately. Revan was playing them all against each other. Instead of launching into a rant or pointing accusations as she suspected, Kaera was surprised when Carth frowned thoughtfully, anger radiating from his aura but not visible in his features.

"The others should know."

The Telosian said quietly, turning and retracing his path to Kaera, Carth joined Mission, Zalbaar and the droid, his mind on the probability that they wouldn't make it off Taris alive, that they were stuck there and they were going to die. Carth briefly wondered what would become of the Republic after they died, if Revan would torture Bastila into becoming his apprentice and take control of the Sith once more, overthrowing Malak before turning his attention back to the Republic and crushing them. Staring at the floor, Carth ignored Mission's exclamation of shock and denial and Zalbaar's confused growls as Kaera informed them of who their companion was, instead he concentrated on all he'd lost to the Sith, all that the galaxy lost and he glared down at the floor, his right hand lowering to his blaster's grip and tightening. Revan would pay, if he survived, if he ever got off Taris, Revan would pay.

Canderous Ordo glared at Calo Nord's short and retreating form as he clenched his teeth together. The nerve of that little bastard, and to be wearing the armor of a fallen Mandalorian. Canderous spared a glance at Revan, seeing the Bloodraven was just as annoyed by the short human bounty hunter.

"You think short stuff there is going to be a problem?"  
Revan asked, wondering if Calo had lost his touch in recent years. Calo would have been one of the few in the galaxy still alive to recognize his face and Revan crossed his arms, frowning in both confusion and annoyance. The short bastard was planning something.

"I'm thinking swallowing a few of his teeth would teach him some respect."

Canderous muttered, his hands tightening on his heavy repeating blaster. Calling he and Calo rivals would have been an insult to Canderous' honor. Being someone's rival meant that you each held a certain respect for one another. Canderous respected nothing about Calo, seeing the shorter human as a coward and an opportunist. True, Calo had some skill but the short bounty hunter operated more on distraction and luck in a battle than true talent. Killing was an art, one Canderous had perfected in his long and harsh life as a Mandalorian warrior and he hated men like Calo, who turned killing into a business. It lacked the honor of the hunt, of the kill and it sickened him when he realized he was slowly becoming like Calo in that regard.

"Maybe having to look up at us his entire life has grated on his survival sense. I plan to kill him, slowly for what he just said to me."  
Revan ignored Bastila's scowl as he nodded to Canderous' very real threat. Calo wearing Mandalorian armor, Ordo armor if he wasn't mistaken was no big insult as he'd likely killed the armor's previous owner and earned the right to wear it, it was the modifications he'd made to the armor, butchering its design that was the insult. Mandalorians had been amongst the most advanced races, part of the reason their much smaller fleets were so effective against the Republic but it was the armor, the warriors that had created the backbone of the greatest warrior race the galaxy had ever known. Calo wearing the armor of a fallen Ordo, then taunting Canderous was an insult Revan knew one of the men would not survive.

"If the two of you are quite finished plotting murder, might I suggest-"

Canderous answered Bastila before she finished.

"No you may not, but thanks for asking."

Revan chuckled, his smirk dropping at the cold glare Bastila threw towards him. Time was of the essence, Malak was planning an orbital bombardment of Taris and billions of people would die. It wasn't the time to joke and Bastila was quickly growing weary of his company.

"She's right, Canderous. Malak isn't a patient man, the Sith were evacuating that base when we hit it... I'm pretty sure you know what that means."  
Canderous' cold features grew colder, his steel blue eyes narrowing as he gritted his teeth.

"Coward won't even get off his damned ship and look for this spoiled Jedi Princess himself will he? Fine, lets kill these morons and get the Hell out of here. I take it with the absence of that tin can that you've got some other friends to get off this mudball?"  
Revan nodded and Canderous went into kill mode, moving to the door and punching the control while Revan shouldered his blaster rifle and Bastila sighed, drawing her lightsaber. No reason to bother covering up her status as a Jedi if she were going to be off-world, though she found Revan's use of a blaster rifle to be strange. He almost seemed to be avoiding using his own saber. Surely he wouldn't care at this point if Canderous knew who and what he was or not.

"Fast and loud or slow and quiet?"  
Canderous asked Revan, smirking as he brought his blaster to the ready. Revan opened his mouth to respond when suddenly alarms in the base sounded as the structure around them trembled.

"Guess we're doing it the easy way!"  
Revan muttered, breaking from cover and moving to the next door that lead into Davik Kang's estate. Canderous grunted in response, checking the rear before moving to Revan's side and punching the door control. Four of Davik's guards were running down the hallways, towards the landing bay and Revan rose his blaster rifle, firing with Canderous into the guard's passing forms. Needless to say it was over quickly and Bastila lowered her saber, sighing as she followed. Chances were she wasn't going to get the chance to use her weapon if these two were leading the way. Unwelcome thoughts invaded her mind as she watched the two Mandalorians work together, virtually annihilating the small army that made up Davik's personal security force.

"He's gonna have the ship locked down, you know that right?"  
Revan asked Canderous, both Mandalorians covered with sweat and breathing heavily as they sprinted through the gaps in the hallways, Bastila following quietly behind them, a pinched frown on her face. She was starting to see just why the Republic had so much trouble with the Mandalorians. While Davik did not have the best trained men as his guards, they weren't completely incompetent but Revan and Canderous seemed to kill them off with frightening ease. They were literally mowing the guards down and some had even been prepared for them. A hum and a simple twist deflected a blasterbolt meant for her and Bastila moved into action, sprinting to the side to avoid another shot and using the wall to vault herself towards her attacker. The saber hissed as it cut through the Exchange guard's weapon and Bastila made eye contact with her attacker, a human male that was likely only a few years older than Revan. The man looked startled before he moved to tackle her, wielding his weapon as a cudgel. Bastila reacted instantly, raising her saber and slicing it cleanly across the man's chest. The man dropped and Bastila sighed, troubled at having to end another life but knowing it was necessary. She supposed that was the main difference between herself and her two Mandalorian companions. Canderous seemed to be enjoying himself, a smirk etched on his aged and rough features as his overpowered blaster tore through shields and armor and flesh like paper while Revan wore the expression she'd seen him wear nearly every time he killed. One lacking any emotion. The bond was growing stronger, Bastila knew. She could catch more and more slips in Revan's control over the link that bridged their minds, their fates together and she was gaining a unique opportunity amongst the Jedi, the ability to study the mind of one of the Order's greatest enemies.

"She may talk a lot and she's too damned soft for my liking but if nothing else, the Jedi sure know how to fight."  
Canderous spoke only loud enough for Revan to hear, his brow raised slightly in surprise as he admired Bastila's quickly dispatched execution of the Exchange guard. Revan nodded absently to the older Mandalorian's statement, his hands opening slowly as he dropped his rifle to the ground. His face grew troubled and he sighed, his hand moving inside his cloak and stopping at the base of his armor.

"No time."  
Revan whispered. Canderous' eyes widened when Revan dropped his weapon, only to replace the rifle with a lightsaber. The blood-red blade came to life with a snap and hiss and a deadly hum that he'd heard on several occasions in battle filled his ears as Revan stepped around their cover, moving at a full sprint down the adjacent hallway as dozens of blasterbolts peppered the wall to the adjoining corridor. Canderous only heard shouting and blaster fire mixed with the near-constant humming of Revan's lightsaber, occasionally broken by a hissing as it connected with flesh. The intensity of the guard's fire had forced him to pull his head back or get a faceful of blasterbolt and Canderous growled in annoyance, wishing he still had his armor while he chanced a glance down the hallway. Revan had his lightsaber imbedded in a sealed hatch, the metal melting away as it cut a clean hole through the material. The air seemed thick with ozone and Canderous moved from his cover, stopping outside the doorway as Revan moved into the prison, an explosion and the sound of crossed circuits reaching his ears before he followed through the hole Revan's saber made, seeing a destroyed torture droid and the _Ebon Hawk's_ pilot sealed in a Force-Cage.

"More to you than I thought, Bloodraven."  
Canderous muttered, his eyes narrowing in suspicion as he studied Revan. Canderous didn't like surprises and a Mandalorian Jedi was a pretty big surprise since they didn't exist. The red blade added to his confusion over the situation and Canderous cast a wary glance at Bastila as she crawled through the hole in the doorway, her gray eyes fixed on Revan as she shifted her stance warily. There wasn't any surprise on her face, only wariness and Canderous frowned, sneering at the imprisoned pilot as the man begged to be freed from his prison.

"Give us the _Hawk's_ security codes and I'll consider it."  
Canderous growled, to which the man hastily agreed. Canderous honored his word, considering letting the man go before he shrugged in silent apology and moved out of the room, raising his weapon and covering their path out of Davik's estate. The landing bay was close and the sooner they got of Taris, the better with how badly the building was shaking.

"Oh for Force's sake just let him go, what harm could he do?"  
Bastila asked, seeing Revan following Canderous' example. Revan turned, locking eyes with Bastila as he considered her words carefully.

"Very well."  
Revan decided, pulling back from the doorway and deactivating the pilot's confinements.   
"Get lost."  
Revan ordered, to which the pilot quickly nodded and complied. Canderous merely sneered at the man as he ran past him, making certain the pilot wouldn't try to steal their ride before taking his weapon's aim from his retreating form.

"We have the matter of where we are going once we get to the _Hawk _to consider."  
Bastila stated carefully, her eyes narrowed as they studied Revan. His aura was dark, though not overpoweringly dark and while he was capable of and had on occasion exercised great evil, Bastila was not surprised by Revan's response. She loathed the man but there was something about him that she wanted to believe was just, honorable. She couldn't justify her reasoning behind saving him otherwise. Not without considering how she'd felt a moment of compassion for the man and saved him, tied her essence with his own to keep him alive.

"Well first we get the others, then we decide."  
Revan stated, ignoring Bastila for the time being as he moved to follow Canderous. Bastila quickly followed and the trio of humans worked their way quickly to the hangar containing the _Ebon Hawk._ Canderous spared Revan a look, letting the younger Mandalorian know he wanted an explanation for why he was using a lightsaber to which Revan offered a subtle nod. Revan imbedded his lightsaber into the control mechanism of the hangar doorway, the damage short-circuiting the relays and forcing the door to open, revealing the _Ebon Hawk._ The sight of their salvation from Taris' destruction was short lived when all three humans took notice of the other two humans in the hangar.

"Damn those Sith, I knew they'd turn on us sooner or- Well... what do we have here, thieves in the hangar..."  
Davik didn't seem too worried, though he wore a troubled look when he spotted Revan and Bastila's lightsabers. Calo didn't seem too bothered by the development either and confidently stated that he would take care of Davik's problem. Revan rose a brow when Calo was silenced by a section of the hangar's ceiling collapsing and burying the small man beneath it. Revan didn't even bother fighting Davik, leaving the task to Canderous as he moved to the _Ebon Hawk's_ ramp, entering the security codes to unlock the ship as Canderous let the Exchange crime boss get well acquainted with his blaster rifle. Bastila sighed heavily, moving past Revan and to the controls of the _Hawk _while Canderous sauntered over to where Calo Nord was buried.

"Shame I didn't get the chance to kill the little bastard."  
The Mandalorian muttered, moving to the _Ebon Hawk _ and sealing the ramp behind him.

"What the Hell happened to this heap?"  
Canderous complained as he took in the mess that was the _Hawk's_ interior. Revan was kneeling beside a damaged console, his mouth turned into a deep frown as he turned several wires around in his hands.

"Hyperdrive is damaged, so are the weapons systems."  
Canderous scowled, not liking the idea of being defenseless and lacking the ability for a tactical withdrawal. He hated running as much as the next Mandalorian but he wasn't suicidal.

"I'll check out this heap's hyperdrive. You get those cannons online, Bloodraven."  
Revan nodded, knowing Canderous could likely handle the hyperdrive better than he while Bastila appeared from behind him, frowning down at the deposed Dark Lord.

"I saw the damage from the cockpit, she should be space worthy but without hyperdrive..."  
Revan snarled, kicking the conduit linking the _Hawk's _lower defensive batteries and anti-personnel turrets.

"We'll have to overhaul this entire system to get most of the point defenses online. Best I can do without more parts or time is the top turret. I don't like this, Bastila. Get us to the others, I'm sure the Jedi taught you how to fly a ship."  
Bastila frowned at Revan, nodding as she moved back to the cockpit. Something was bothering the man and she had a feeling, gazing out of the _Ebon Hawk's_ viewport that it was the same thing bothering her. Red-orange blasterbolts rained down on Taris, tearing off chunks of buildings and killing countless innocents. Closing her eyes, Bastila collected herself, repeating the Jedi Code in her mind for comfort while she fired up the _Hawk's_ engines and moved to the coordinates of the abandoned base Revan had told the others to go to. Several Sith fighters tried tracking them, but were forced to break off pursuit as the main guns of the Sith Capitol ships began firing on their section of Taris. Bastila wove between the collapsing spires of Taris' once majestic Upper City, her gray eyes shining as she mourned the loss of so many, feeling the loss through the Force. The Padawan held a hand over her chest, narrowly avoiding a barrage of blasterfire that the deflector shields thankfully absorbed. A physical pain tore into her very soul with the death of Taris, leaving only pain and guilt and sorrow as she tried to fly the stolen smuggling vessel.   
Revan quickly worked on the _Ebon Hawk's_ upper defense turret, grumbling as he stripped off his cloak and then his armor to squeeze into a narrow compartment to check the power conduit leading to the weapons platform. The conduit was undamaged, though a junction point has suffered some damage from the bombardment and he quickly shut down power to the system, stripping the lower turret's damaged conduit for parts. There was a hull breach in some part of the compartment and Revan's brown eyes tracked and locked on to a clean hole burned through the _Hawk's_ armored plating where a blasterbolt from one of the orbiting Sith Interdictors had ripped right through the small smuggling craft's hull. Pulling back from the compartment, Revan dug through the storage containers in the cargo bay, finding an emergency sealing kit in more time than he would have liked. The _Hawk _landed in an exposed section of the deserted Mandalorian base and Revan took little notice, crawling back into the compartment and working on the hull breach. Satisfied that the work was finished, Revan shifted in annoyance, quickly refitting the power supply to the upper turret as he felt the _Hawk _lift off.   
"Dammit, we've got incoming fighters! Someone get on that gun turret!"  
Carth's voice echoed over the internal communications and Revan snapped into action, forgetting there were two Jedi more than capable of operating the gun turrets as he emerged from the compartment, catching Mission and Zalbaar in the room before him. Mission gasped slightly, her eyes wide and following Revan while Zalbaar gave the man a measuring stare. Revan frowned at the two, brushing off their behavior as grief over the destruction of their home before he moved to the turret, activating the controls and tracking the first wave of Sith fighters. He didn't have time to reach through the Force to sense the emotions of the _Hawk's_ crew as his attention focused with pinpoint accuracy on the threat outside the ship. Half a dozen Sith fighters were consumed by the _Hawk's _upper turret before he saw a stream of hyperspace form around them and the alarms were silenced. Sitting back in the gunner's chair, Revan sighed, suddenly very tired. He'd spent more time than he'd liked on Taris and now he had two Jedi and a Republic Commander to deal with. Revan looked down at his belt, scowling when he realized he'd thoughtlessly left his lightsaber in the compartment he was working on and he sighed, climbing down the ladder and back into the _Ebon Hawk's _common room.

"Where are we heading?"  
Revan asked the first person he saw, Carth. The Republic soldier looked surprised a moment before he moved to stand in front of Revan, his brown eyes narrowed as he studied the man before him.

"The Jedi Enclave on Dantooine."  
Carth stated, his hand already on his pistol. Revan resisted the urge to groan, the enclave on Dantooine wasn't exactly his favorite spot or his first choice in where to work out reclaiming the title of Dark Lord before he caught a warning in the Force and took his attention from the ceiling of the _Hawk_ to Carth's eyes. A blaster shot sounded and Revan held Carth's gaze, frowning at the older man before he looked down at his stomach, seeing a clean and precise shot that had gone cleanly through his abdomen and came out near his spine. The former Dark Lord staggered slightly, falling back until he slid slowly down the wall and he held his left hand to his wound, looking up at Carth with a pained smirk. The hatred in the older man was tangible and he took in a shaky breath, as if he could breath in the hate and draw strength from it.

"You know, if you weren't Force-blind I might try to recruit you."  
Knowing the Kinrath was out of the bag so to speak, Revan saw no point in his continued deceit and he held Carth's gaze, ignoring the pistol pointed directly at his forehead. He'd wanted to go down fighting but if he was going to die, he'd die like a warrior, looking death in the face. Carth hesitated, his eyes showing his uncertainty before he squeezed the trigger, a golden flash registering to his mind before he found himself lying on the ground, a burly Mandalorian standing over him and glaring down at him with murderous intent while Bastila's golden lightsaber blazed, halted in the air between where the front and rear of his blaster had been. Carth felt the pain in the side of his head and looked up at Canderous with a scowl, rubbing his jaw and discarding his ruined blaster as he stood.

"Fine, you want to keep that bastard alive you deal with it but Republic Command is going to hear about who you're hiding."  
Canderous glared menacingly at the Telosian, not knowing exactly what the exchange was about but coming to the defense of his fellow Mandalorian. Canderous' eyes followed Carth until he was gone before he turned to Bastila and nodded his approval to the Jedi. Carth had gotten the shot off, only the Padawan's quick and timely intervention had saved Revan's life and while he still had no idea of Revan's true identity, something inside Canderous told him to help his newfound ally and he'd reacted as quickly as he could, rushing the Republic soldier and smashing a powerful fist in the side of his head while Bastila sliced Carth's pistol in half with startling precision.

"Revan, can you hear me?"  
Bastila's soft, cultured voice drew Canderous' mind from the red haze that had overtaken it and he looked down at Revan in awe. Revan, the man who had defeated Mandalore the Ultimate, who had brought the Mandalorian people to their knees was before him. Revan was alive and more importantly, Revan was a Mandalorian. Despite Revan being wounded, grievously, Canderous looked down at the man with respect, not seeing a traitor but a warrior, the greatest warrior in the galaxy.   
"What does Mandalore order?"  
Canderous asked, kneeling before Revan and offering a salute in the form of a fisted hand over his heart. Revan, dazed slightly from the pain stared at Canderous and gave a pained, half-laugh.

"I cannot undo what was done to our people by my own hands... I cannot undo anything. Live, Mandalorian. Bring glory to our people."  
Revan's eyes rolled back into his head and he grew limp. Bastila moved to carry Revan's unconscious form but a furry arm blocked her path. Zalbaar lifted Revan effortlessly, carrying the wounded and unconscious former Sith to the _Ebon Hawk's _small medical bay while Mission looked on, startled to silence by the violence she had witnessed in the past hours.

"Canderous could you search the cargo bay for some medical supplies?"  
Bastila asked quietly, wondering how often she would be forced to keep Revan alive. Canderous nodded, moving to the cargo bay without protest as he searched for the means to save the man his mind saw as Mandalore, the only man who possessed Mandalore's mask and could reunite and restore the Mandalorian people. Revan needed to live and Canderous would do everything in his power to see it done. The Mandalorians would rise once more under the banner of Mandalore Revan.

"Zalbaar... it would be better if you kept an eye on Mission... I'm certain this entire experience has been... difficult for her."  
Zalbaar nodded silently, feeling as if he'd betrayed Revan somehow. He'd offered Tauryn Katarn a life-debt and while Revan was not Tauryn, it was still the same man who had saved him from a life of slavery and whatever Revan's motives, the Wookiee knew he was still bound by honor to fulfil the life-debt and that he had failed to protect Revan from Carth and that he had failed to avenge him. With a growl, the Wookiee made to storm the cockpit and wring Carth's neck before he caught sight of Mission, her head in her hands as her shoulders shook silently. Revenge could wait, he decided, moving to his friend's side and engulfing her in a tight hug that Mission returned as she silently wept for her destroyed home and strangely for Revan. She had felt betrayed when Kaera had told her the Mandalorian's true identity but she still saw what he had done under the guise of Tauryn. Still, Revan was a Sith Lord and the Sith had just destroyed her home. The young Twi'lek continued to cry, not knowing what to think as she held tightly to Zalbaar, her thoughts drifting to her lost brother Griff and wondering if he were still out there, worried about her or if he was dead, like everyone else she'd known her entire life. Suddenly, Mission knew she wanted Revan to live. It didn't matter that he was a former Sith Lord or a Mandalorian or anything like that. Revan was a friend, someone who'd saved her and Big Z from certain death on Taris or worse and what Carth had done was wrong. Finding strength from her decision, Mission pulled away from Zalbaar and moved to the med bay, silently watching Bastila work on Revan's injury.   
"Is the- is there anything I can do to help?"  
Mission asked quietly, drawing Bastila's attention. The Padawan rose a brow in surprise, her heart going out to the young Twi'lek as she saw the strength in the young girl. In spite of her homeworld's destruction or of Revan's deceit she still wanted to help. It reminded Bastila of why she had saved Revan's life in the first place and with new resolve she nodded to the Twi'lek, turning back to Revan's wound as she worked on finding a dressing and a means to stop the bleeding.

"Get that medkit over there and help me with this dressing..."  
Mission nodded, moving quickly to Bastila's side as she picked up the medkit. There was little they could do to save Revan from what would for most sentients be a mortal wound but Revan was different. Bastila could already feel the Force mending Revan's insides and she moved to help it along as best she could, adding her own energy to the healing process while she worked on Revan's injury from the outside. Canderous returned several minutes later with a canister of kolto and several medkits that were designed to treat serious injury and the group continued to work on Revan while Zalbaar stood guard outside of the small room, glaring menacingly at Kaera as she approached.   
_"What do you want, Jedi."  
_Zalbaar growled, causing the Jedi to stop in surprise. Kaera tried to look past Zalbaar's massive form but gave up when the Wookiee was joined by Canderous. Canderous didn't block the way for long as he moved past Kaera, a vibroblade firmly in hand as he moved to remove Carth Onasi of his head.

"Not so fast, Mandalorian."  
Kaera warned, igniting her lightsaber. Canderous turned, glaring at the Jedi's weapon and then her before he turned to her, fully prepared to take her on as well.

"Carth Onasi may have been one hell of a pilot and soldier during the Mandalorian wars but he just attempted to assassinate Mandalore. I'm bound by honor to kill the man."  
Canderous had recognized Carth, having seen the other man's face on news broadcasts and intelligence files the Mandalorians had intercepted during the war and while he respected the man's abilities, he had hated what he'd just witnessed the man do to Revan. It was a cowardly attack, an ambush and had no honor.

"He had his reasons for what he did. Revan is a danger to us all... He could not be allowed to-"  
Bastila appeared between the two, her gray eyes blazing with fury.

"You two are not helping. Kill one another or be bloody quiet!"  
Canderous' expression did not change though he stood down, waiting for Kaera's response. Kaera stared at Bastila as if she'd grown a second head, shocked by the Padawan's display.

"Bastila if you haven't noticed Revan is a prisoner of the Jedi Order. He cannot be allowed to run free and-"  
Bastila cut Kaera off quickly.

"And Jedi do **not** execute prisoners. Do not delude yourself, that was what this was meant to be!"  
Kaera opened and closed her mouth, not having seen what had happened she had no say in the matter though she knew someone like Carth would stand no chance against Revan head to head.

"It doesn't matter. In a few hours we will be on Dantooine and the Council can decide what to do with Revan **and** you!"  
Kaera moved to the cockpit to join Carth, deactivating her saber though she kept it in her hand. Canderous' eyes followed her before he turned back to Bastila. If Bastila had managed to capture Revan, she deserved his respect based on her skills alone and he decided that if Revan were willing to put up with the other Jedi, he could. For now. It wasn't like Revan lacked the ability to escape Jedi custody... well, before he'd been shot in the gut.


	18. Chapter 17: Cover Up

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"How can I put into words what that Cathar girl has been through... I'd turn my back on this war to help her if there weren't a thousand... a million others like her out there, others that are the victims of honorless men. I am no longer a member of the Order, nor does any bond exist between us but... you are a Master I trust with this matter. She is strong in the Force, passionate as all her people and- she's important, I can feel it. Train her, protect her- anything just, just keep her away from me. My anger... almost got the better of me, it still may and I cannot look upon her without seeing what was so wrongly done to her family, her people... the girl herself. I- I think it may make a murderer out of me. I cannot take a child with me to war, do not force me to, Master Quatra."_

_Rogue Jedi Knight Revan to Jedi Master Quatra shortly after the Liberation of Taris_

Chapter 17: Cover Up

Dantooine was normally a sparsely populated and peaceful world, at least that was the world's description was in the Republic databanks. The reality was not so simple. Bands of Mandalorian raiders, Mandalores that refused to surrender their armor or weapons at the end of the wars and fled, dotted Dantooine's grassy plains. Members of a once proud and honorable people had become little more than pirates and thugs, only their skill in combat elevating them over the level of those less than savory characters. Carth Onasi found it fitting in a way that one of the Republic's supposedly most peaceful worlds and one of the Jedi's greatest strongholds was little more than a border-world that lacked any central form of government, law or security. The only real defense of the world consisted of a single orbital defense platform that was a relic of the Great Sith War and the Jedi Enclave's fighter compliment. One that couldn't hardly match the strength of a single Republic capitol ship's numbers let alone that of an invading Sith force. Stepping out of his transport, Carth quickly took in his surroundings. The orbital defense platform was old, but well-maintained and its small compliment of Republic soldiers were well-enough equipped to handle what he was about to ask High Command.

"Commander Onasi, good to see you. When we heard about the _Spire_ we feared the worse."  
Carth returned the officer's salute, taking in the man's uniform and rank. The Iridonian Lieutenant was well-groomed and well-dressed, likely having more than enough time for operating on such a distant outpost and Carth sighed, glancing around at the outdated fighters that lined the bays.

"We have a situation Lieutenant. We'll continue this discussion in private but it is of the utmost importance that I get in contact with High Command ASAP."  
The Lieutenant's neutral features hardened as he grew serious, offering another flawless salute.

"Yes sir!"  
Carth followed the Iridonian to a secured communications relay, sighing as he absently rubbed his jaw. Between Canderous giving him a good thrashing and the glares from Mission and Zalbaar, Carth was in no mood to be in the _Ebon Hawk_, part of the reason he'd taken a shuttle. They Jedi had impounded the _Hawk_ anyways and had kept him for questioning for nearly three days before they let him roam the Enclave freely. He needed to get into contact with the Republic, he needed to let them know about Darth Revan before the Jedi _lost _him.

_"I should have killed him, should have been a little faster..."  
_Carth sighed in irritation, his stomach feeling uneasy as he dwelled too long on Revan. The way he'd _taken care_ of the younger man wasn't anything to be proud of but he did what was necessary. If Revan had been able to gain the loyalty of the others, kill Kaera and himself then the galaxy was surely doomed. They needed Bastila and if Revan turned her, or even kept her out of the war effort, the Republic would fall. Someone higher up on the chain of command, someone with a higher pay grade than him needed to know about what was going on.

Revan turned his head, twisting his body slightly as he brushed the side of his head against the pillow of his _bed_. Sighing, Revan felt the annoying itch that had been bothering him for nearly an hour ease and turned, glancing down at his restrained hands before he winced at the pain in his abdomen. Pain was good though, better than an annoying bloody itch and it gave him something to focus on besides his discomfort. It gave him anger. Chewing on the inside of his cheek, Revan glanced around his empty room, blowing out several bursts of air in boredom as he tapped his finger.  
"They say the waiting is the worst part of war..."

Revan muttered, waiting impatiently for the Council to make up its mind on what to do to him. He wasn't sedated like the last time he'd been in the fine care of Dantooine's Jedi Healers, the lack of any real painkillers along with his stomach wound was enough to keep him sitting fairly still. No sense ripping open his gut again just to fall over and bleed to death from the inside out. Better to wait, bide his time and heal before he started taking heads.

"With my luck they're bloody speaking with the High Council about this right now. There's a good two weeks of my life wasted..."  
Chuckling, Revan fought down a cough, not wanting to feel his abdomen burn anymore than it had to. Bastila had been ushered away from his side as soon as they'd restrained him three days before and he hadn't even been awake for more than an hour since then, more than enough time for someone to kill him in his sleep if they had felt so inclined. Disappointed that Carth hadn't tried to kill him again, or that Kaera hadn't either, Revan continued tapping his finger, overcome with boredom. If the Jedi wanted to _talk _to him, he was just going to swallow his own tongue. Talking in circles was annoying and he didn't particularly feel like justifying his actions as the Dark Lord or explaining himself. They should know it to be futile. A hiss sounded as the doors opened and Revan glanced up, mildly interested in the Jedi that stood before him, leaning heavily on the shoulder of a Jedi Healer as she was moved into the room to sit in a chair placed several yards from the foot of Revan's bed.

"Lord Revan."  
The Jedi stated simply, tilting her head in slight acknowledgment of the younger human. Revan rose a brow, deciding to return the pleasantries.

"Master Quatra."  
Revan returned a stiff nod, swallowing as his abdomen burned. Pain was nothing new to Revan, nor wounds as severe as the one he had in his gut but it still hurt like all Hell. It felt as though a lightsaber was being turned over and over in his stomach and that his tissue was regrowing again and again so it could once again be burned away. In hindsight it was probably a deserved torment but Revan still didn't like being wounded.

"So I take it you are the one the Council thought I would _open up _to..?"  
Revan asked mockingly, his eyes feeling heavy. There was a difference between asleep and unconscious and he was feeling that difference. Steadying his breath, Revan shifted slightly, fighting back a groan as his stomach again protested. Even breathing was agonizing but he wasn't going to let on how much it hurt, how weakened he was. Quatra merely smiled in bemusement, having known Revan for part of his apprenticeship on Dantooine and one of the few Jedi Masters that felt at ease in his presence. Revan stared blankly at the Jedi Master, his eyes studying her face carefully and making note of the worry lines and gray hairs that were steadily replacing her black. Even the Master's black eyes were dull, faded with guilt and conflict. Revan glanced at the Jedi Healer that had escorted Quatra into his prison, his face shifting to a cold glare as he recognized the Aqualish as one that had been part of his previous treatment on Dantooine, months before.

"I still remember _everything_ you've done for me, Healer. Would you like me to show my gratitude?"  
Revan smirked as the Jedi paled, though he admired how she stood her ground. Of course, having a lightsaber to fend off a wounded and restrained opponent wasn't very daunting a task but Revan found it heartening. Maybe the Jedi had stopped being weaklings since his supposed demise.

"I'll be fine, Melan'rai."  
The Master soothed the tense Jedi Healer. The Aqualish looked conflicted a moment before she caught the feral gleam in Revan's brown eyes as he stared at her weapon. She knew by reputation of Revan's abilities and with the fact that his first Master had mastered a technique of using lightsabers without even lifting a finger in mind, she wisely backed out of the room, leaving Jedi Master with deposed Sith Lord.

"This has nothing to do with me being... well me, does it?"  
Revan asked in annoyance. The last thing he wanted was a talk about how disappointed Kreia would be in him or how far he'd strayed from his potential as a Jedi _slave._ He saw Jedi as little more than slaves of the Republic and had no wish to be one. That and he knew something the Jedi didn't. Quatra nodded to Revan, frowning as she shifted in her seat and winced at the lightsaber wound in her abdomen. She could sympathize with Revan in that regard but that was where sympathy ended. The Jedi and Sith respected one another but were not friends. Still, to a Mandalorian respect was often better than friendship.

"I- I have failed her..."  
The Jedi looked troubled, ashamed almost and Revan frowned at the Master, his mind shifting from the Lords of Malachor to the Jedi before him for a moment before it struck him. She'd failed her student, the young Cathar he'd left in her care before... before he'd given in to his darker impulses. Revan's eyes hardened, his face losing any expression as he stared through golden-yellow eyes at the Jedi Master, saying nothing. Rage burned within the former Dark Lord but he held to it, controlled it and bent it to his will as he focused it on his own power, using it to heal his damaged body. His wound mended rapidly with the burst in his power, though it would be hours before he could even think of sitting up at the curret rate.

"I- she was so strong... so passionate but- she could never forget Taris... when- when she heard about the Sith blockading Taris she became... emotional. I- I tried to have her confront it, release it to the Force but- When she heard about what Malak did... she-"  
Revan's eyes locked with the Jedi Master's, nothing visible within their golden depths. All traces of his natural brown were gone, replaced by the eyes of a Sith Lord. Revan said nothing, merely holding the Jedi's gaze until she looked away.

"She- she did this to me... Force she thought she'd killed me, she almost did but- but no one has seen her since and there was so much anger, so much darkness in her..."  
Wearily, Quatra rubbed her eyes, feeling a stinging as she met Revan's cold, deathly glare. Even if he was a mockery of what he'd once been as a Jedi, Revan had never been one to doubt his decisions. He'd honestly believed it had been wise to leave Juhani with Quatra as the older Jedi had been a close friend of his own Master Kreia and he'd grown to trust her skills. Apparently those skills were lacking. Unlike Kreia, Quatra failed to understand that darkness is not a simple occurrence due to passion, but something that is nurtured, given liberty to grow until it consumes every thought, every action and all you think of is the blood of your foes.

"What exactly do you expect me to do about it? I turned my back on the Order years ago... I thought that was fairly obvious. Incompetence, weakness is a disease. One I plan to rid the galaxy of in due time. Be gone, Jedi."  
Revan kept his eyes locked with Quatra's, waiting patiently as the Jedi summoned Melan'rai and stood. Revan continued to stare at the sealed doorway for hours afterwards, his thoughts on the past. Maybe he should have taken the Cathar with him to war. The Jedi simply didn't understand passion and Cathar were if nothing else, a passionate people. Juhani had been touched, scarred by darkness through no fault of her own and it could never be healed as the Jedi saw it. It would forever dominate the young Cathar's mind and Revan lowered his eyes from the door, letting out a long, weary sigh as he absently pulled at his restraints. Yet another mistake he'd have to live with. There seemed to be more and more of those as of late and Revan was not a man who enjoyed surprises, or living in the past. Hours passed before anyone else paid Revan a visit and he was not surprised when Kaera Nurr entered quietly, staring down at him through troubled blue eyes. Revan merely held Kaera's gaze steadily, his face expressionless as he waited for the Jedi to speak. When Kaera said nothing, merely averting her eyes, Revan settled back into his bed, waiting as the four Dantooine Jedi Councillors entered with Bastila. The six Jedi stood silently, varying expressions of unease, annoyance, confusion, sympathy and open disgust clear on their faces.

"Lets get this over with then."  
Revan muttered, waiting for the questions he knew were coming. Zhar Lestin, a Twi'lek Jedi and one that had instructed him for a short while on Dantooine spoke first, talking slowly, as if he were uncertain of his own words.

"Padawan Shan has... given us a bit of insight into your views... The bond the two of you share has linked your minds and given Bastila a unique view of your... thoughts."  
Revan offered a humorless smirk towards Bastila, seeing that the Padawan held his gaze, her blue-gray eyes narrowing a fraction as she flinched slightly.

"Nightmares, really. None of this is news, though. I know the Republic and the Jedi Order have come to their own conclusions as to the whys. I carry the taint of the Darkside, I enjoy the violence, I am not at peace with myself, and so on and so forth. Really, kill me and get it over with. Verbal torture has lost its appeal."  
Vrook Lamar, having always been at odds with Revan, even during his apprenticeship scowled.

"The why has since lost its meaning, to yourself as well as to us. All that matters now, Revan is the where."  
Revan's face flickered, a ghost of an emotion passing through him which caused Bastila to tense as she felt it clearly through the bond. Revan had been surprised by Vrook's straightforward statement and had lost his concentration for a split second. None of the others, aside from herself noticed and Bastila took a step back, her breathing slightly heavier as she saw a flicker of a massive space station, the power she could feel from the image was simply terrible, she had no other word to describe it and she felt her throat tighten, her eyes moving from the floor to meet Revan's brown as she frowned.

"The _Star Forge_..."

The Jedi Councillors all turned sharply to Bastila, having heard rumors of a forge of some kind from captured Sith as well as intercepted intelligence reports. The Forge and the name of his apprentice were the last words Bastila had heard from the Dark Lord on his destroyed flagship and it obviously held great significance for the Sith Empire. Revan's brow was pinched, a look of concentration on his face as he gritted his teeth, his lip curling in a soundless snarl as he fixed enraged brown eyes on the Jedi around him.

"So you expect me to betray the secrets of my powers to you? What is my motivation for this? I'm too dangerous to be kept imprisoned forever and you know the Republic is going to want my head. There is nothing you can offer me that would make me even begin to want to tell you what Malak and I found on the Rim, what gave us the power to bring your pathetic Order and your weak Republic to their knees. I have nothing further to say to any of you."

Vrook crossed his arms calmly, staring impassively down at the restrained and wounded Sith Lord. He despised Revan, even had trouble controlling his anger on the issue but as a Jedi Master, he was not a temperamental child and while a thousand insults came to the tip of his tongue to throw at the deposed Sith Lord, Vrook only offered a simple, cutting statement, knowing the truth of it would bother Revan more than anything else.

"The secrets to _your_ power? You must have taken more brain damage than we'd thought, its **Malak's**power now."  
Revan's jaw tightened and he sneered at Vrook, his face twitching as his anger grew to rage. He could not ignore the simple challenge in the older human's voice and he fixed his gaze with Vrook's, suddenly smiling as he turned his attention to Bastila.

"I seem to recall the last time you had me in this room, restrained and offering me ultimatums. As I recall, my brain was not so damaged then, not until you stuck your fingers into it and tried to reprogram me like a droid. Where is Atris this time? Oh, right. I destroyed her little enclave didn't I? O suppose she is busy trying to rebuild it..."

The Jedi Councillors exchanged troubled looks, knowing that Telos IV was more than just a massacre but also an attack on the Jedi Order. Revan hadn't known where the secret Jedi enclave was exactly on Telos, but it was rendered next to useless with the condition the subsequent bombardment had left the planet in. It would take years and countless credits before Telos could be habitable again, if it were possible at all.

"I- I was told Revan was clinically brain dead..."  
Bastila muttered, troubled at both the implications of Revan's statement as well as his causal reference to Telos' destruction. She could sense his thoughts to a degree and knew he was being honest. Revan chose to respond before any of the Jedi Councillors could intervene.

"I suppose the neural disruptor they had on me while I was in a coma was could very well have rendered me brain dead... You would have liked that wouldn't you, Masters? A convenient pawn to be programmed as you saw fit... I wonder if you'd like to join me in creating a new Sith Council, you might even be able to teach me a thing or two."  
Revan smirked at the uncomfortable expressions on the Jedi Master's faces. Bastila looked betrayed and vulnerable, the first time he'd ever seen the look on her face and Revan frowned at that, his mind going over the possibilities of turning her but destroying her in the process. To his surprise, Revan found he had little interest in breaking Bastila so much as he wanted her to see his viewpoint. He had no problem with who she was, merely what she believed in. Kaera, not having the benefit of a bond with Revan to know that he was telling the truth merely looked disgusted that the former Sith Lord would sink so low as to manipulate Bastila before she caught the expressions on the Councillor's faces. Shock was visible on her features before she regained control, realizing that the Jedi had exhausted their options in regards to Revan and what they had done was simply the only way. Dorak solemnly said as much to which Revan merely smirked in reply. The former Dark Lord knew he had sewn the seeds of doubt in Bastila's mind, caused her to doubt her beliefs and with time, he could sway her to his mindset.

Bastila looked up sharply from where she had been staring at the floor, too shocked and appalled by the harsh and unpleasant truth of what her saving of Revan had nearly done to the man. Revan was a monster and a mass murderer, but in her mind, in the teachings ingrained into her since she had first joined the Order Bastila honestly believed that no one was beyond redemption and that no one deserved execution, regardless of their crimes. What the Jedi had done to Revan could very well be considered rape and murder and the Padawan shuddered as she recalled being imprisoned by a neural disruptor on Taris. Bastila turned from the Councillors to look down at Revan, meeting his eyes and relieved suddenly by the turn of events. Revan was alive, whole and hadn't gone on a killing spree on Dantooine. While his injury played a major part in that, Bastila allowed herself to hope that the good man Revan had once been still existed within him, buried under anger, bitterness and apathy. Perhaps she could help him find that man...

The Republic heavy cruiser _Sojourn_ slowly entered a synchronized orbit with the Dantooine orbital defense station, extending a docking umbilical and matching the small station's movements. A small hiss reverberated along the hulls of both defense platform and starship before the pressure seals locked, spewing a gentle mist of white gas into the vacuum of space momentarily as they cycled. Admiral Forn Dodonna walked purposefully through the _Sojourn_, her back straight and her hands clasped together behind her as she walked. The news Commander Onasi had delivered was troubling, dangerous even and she needed to do damage control, fast. Dodonna was a veteran of the Mandalorian Wars but was too young to have served in the Great Sith War of Exar Kun. The ageing admiral's gray eyes gazed intently at the passageway leading to the orbital platform and she sighed, brushing back her brown hair; the silver strands from both her age and the stress of the wars flickering in the lighting before fading. Carth greeted the Admiral with a grim, troubled face and the Admiral returned the salute the Commander offered, turning her eyes to her own ship's captain, the station's commanding officer and then to Carth.

"Any information regarding Ensign Tauryn Katarn is classified. Do you honestly think that the Jedi Order could doctor the evidence of a _Mandalorian's _service record in the Republic Fleet without our help? They refused to remove the Mandalorian Clan symbols from Revan's body... something about violating the beliefs of their students or some nonsense... its unimportant. What is important is that Tauryn Katarn, Revan Bloodraven; whatever you wish to call him was a former member of the Jedi Order and his commission in the Republic Navy was a wartime commission... the Jedi Generals were disbanded after the Mandalorian Wars... we don't even use them in this war and as such, Revan is remanded to the custody of the Jedi Order. As a prisoner of the Jedi Order, Revan is given all of the protection his status demands... Were he a prisoner of war in the Republic he would be a political prisoner and as such, immune to certain... treasonous charges..."  
Carth frowned, surprised and confused by the Admiral's businesslike delivery of the situation. He'd assumed they would be going down to Dantooine, grabbing Revan and hauling him back to Coruscant for trial and execution but apparently the Republic High Command had other thoughts on the matter. Dodonna turned and fixed her eyes firmly with Carth's, waiting until the soldier straightened, his attention fully focused on the Admiral and not his own thoughts.

"What you did was understandable given the circumstances, Carth. However... you cannot forget just who this man is. This is _Darth Revan_, Commander. The former Dark Lord of the Sith and as such he is a valuable source of information that could very well turn the course of the war."  
None of the officers said anything to that, all of them knowing that the Republic was losing the war, and badly. Taris had been both a blessing and a curse for the Republic, buying them much needed time to resupply and refit outposts and starships while a majority of the Sith fleet hovered over Taris, searching then, and still searching for any signs of Bastila.

"News of Revan, even of Bastila being alive is not to be circulated. As far as the crew of my ship knows, we are here on a routine inspection and it is to remain as such. I will not see Revan for myself, I've no interest in speaking with the man and I am sure the Jedi Order is more than capable of interrogating him."

Carth fought down a snort of disbelief. The Jedi wouldn't go to the lengths required to get any useful information from Revan and the longer the bastard breathed, the longer he was a threat. Seeing Revan in action on Taris had given him a new outlook on the matter, showing him just how manipulative and dangerous the man was. Revan even suffered personal injuries to play his part and Carth preferred the straightforward approach to stabbing someone in the back. Shifting uneasily, Carth fought down the guilt he felt, justifying his actions towards Revan with logic though he still couldn't help but feel he'd done something wrong. What Revan had said to him was still eating away at him and he wondered, in all of his rage over what had happened to his homeworld and to his family if he was becoming like Saul. Try as he might to pin the blame on men like Revan or Malak, it was Saul's face Carth saw each time he thought of his homeworld's destruction, of his destroyed family and he closed his eyes, swallowing back a sigh as he considered his rash actions towards Revan. He felt dirty, ambushing the man and he wondered as to his luck. Were Jedi and Sith really so easy to kill? Were they really so human?

"We have a rare opportunity at this moment, gentlemen. Malak is distracted with Taris, his fleet and armies are scouring the destroyed world for evidence of Bastila and he is sending patrols in all directions in his efforts to find where the _Ebon Hawk _went. There is a new transponder for the _Hawk_ on the _Sojourn_, Carth and I want you to take it back down with you to Dantooine. Until further notice you are to observe the Jedi and Revan and if possible, assist the Order in any problems they may have. High Command knows you are the man for the job and we have the utmost faith in you. Revan is important, Carth but he is not irreplaceable."  
Carth nodded slowly, surprised that he was not being transferred back to the front but knowing that he was perfect for a suicide mission for the good of the Republic in the eyes of the hierarchy. No home, no family and a thirst for revenge that bordered on obsession, Carth was exactly what they needed. That he was a skilled pilot and an excellent fighter by Republic standards were merely bonuses.

On the surface of Dantooine, Revan was once again alone in his prison, seven Jedi Knights on the other side of the door barring his escape and the deposed Sith Lord thrummed his fingers, a smirk on his face as he thought of the grave the Jedi Council was digging itself in regards to Bastila. They had immediately taken the Padawan to the Council Chambers when she had leveled them with a betrayed look. The Jedi Council had directly lied to her and the trust and absolute faith she had in the Order and its tenets had been shaken to its foundations. Revan waited patiently, knowing he only had to wait for the Padawan to come to him. Not that he was in any particular hurry to walk around with the extra hole in his stomach. He could be patient and he knew while the Council forbade Canderous and the others to see him that it was only a matter of time before they let their guard down. Revan knew Canderous, Mission and Zalbaar would try to help him, either out of misplaced faith or archaic loyalty to a dying way, Revan knew he only had to be patient. Revan also knew the Republic had to be involved for his transition into the Republic fleet from his little mindwipe session for it to go as smoothly as it had and was unconcerned over the Republic's part in his imprisonment. They'd leave it to the Jedi and if they didn't, it would make it that much easier to escape when the time came.

"I see you're enjoying yourself."

Revan glanced up at Carth Onasi with a raised brow, surprised to see the soldier. Carth moved to the foot of the former Dark Lord's bed, staring down at the younger man as he crossed his arms, a frown firmly in place.

"I- what I did to you on the_ Hawk _was... It isn't the way men handle their problems. I try to hate you, I do... but you were a hero to me once, the man who saved the Republic from the Mandalorians... I- I think I understand now what you say the Jedi don't understand."  
Revan studied Carth's features, his body language and narrowed his eyes warily as the soldier lowered his hand to rest on his blaster, more out of habit than as a threat.

"And what might that be, pray tell."

The former General asked, his concentration fully on Carth. Carth stared into Revan's eyes silently, a flicker of sympathy flashing in their depths.  
"You turned against your own people to save the Republic. The only way to stop a Mandalorian, to defeat them is to kill them... for the most part and you were responsible for the death of an entire race, your own race. I- I don't know what that would do to a man but when I think about Telos, about my wife Morgana and my son Dustil, I forget I'm a man, sometimes. I forget to act like one. Mandalorians place a lot of value on honor and glory and... and I wonder if you forgot those values in the end."  
Revan stared blankly at Carth, not knowing quite what to say. The man was trying to analyze him, compare their lives and he was not far from the truth, though a few catalysts were missing, big ones and Revan wasn't about to have a heart to heart.

"The more the Republic praised you as a savior, the more you saw the truth. There are no heroes, no saviors in war. Only destroyers. You chose the Republic over your own people and only the Mandalorian's code of honor kept them from hating you as the Republic does now. You finished with your own people and then turned to show the Republic what betrayal felt like, what you were forced to feel by saving their way of life, one that was not your own... Its... I can't even imagine that feeling."  
Revan could, he felt it from time to time when he thought of the past and he kept his face blank, merely staring at Carth in silence before he let out a long sigh, glancing to the doorway and then to Carth. Something was going on and he needed to accelerate his escape plans.

"My reasons for what I did in both wars are my own. Each man must look into himself and ask what is important; what is worthwhile and what is a waste? The Mandalorian war was a waste. My people forgot their honor and I could _feel_ the deaths of those they killed through the Force. There was no glory or honor in what the Mandalorians did to Cathar and you will find few amongst those that remain that would even mention that crime. I hold no aversion to mass murder, not because I seek revenge but because I seek something else. I suppose you are right in assuming I want to show the Republic what I believe, but it is not about grief or revenge or some misguided atonement, Carth. Its about power, strength. The Mandalorian war would never have happened if the Republic was strong enough. As in all things if something is weak it is replaced by something stronger. My Empire speaks for itself, Commander. Many wars should not have happened, maybe this will spare us a few down the road..."

Carth knew Revan was leaving something out and the Republic Commander thought over Revan's response, surprised by the lack of anger Revan had directed towards him. It was eerie in a way but Carth merely nodded to what Revan said and left, the _Ebon Hawk's_ transponder replacement and the message from Republic High Command in his pocket while me moved towards the Council Chambers, waiting outside once he arrived for leave to enter. Revan had a way of being cryptic, but making sense. It grated on Carth's nerves slightly as he pondered exactly what he had just done. He'd come pretty close to apologizing to Revan and actually meaning it. His skin still felt like it was crawling when he looked down at Revan in his restraints but it was not because of who Revan was, it was because of what he had done to the man. He actually felt ashamed about it. It was what made Carth Onasi a good man, in spite of his losses and his flaws and he could almost see the reasoning behind Revan's betrayal.

Revan stared at the doorway after Carth left, a frown firmly in place before he turned to stare suspiciously at the medical devices he was hooked up to. Maybe he was drugged, there was no way Carth Onasi had just apologized to him. Sighing in both annoyance and exhaustion, Revan took in a deep breath, holding it and feeling the pain of his stomach as his muscles contracted. Fighting off the spasm of pain though sheer will, Revan's skin flushed and he pulled as hard as he could against his restraints. Luckily the Jedi had strapped him down with leather and not metal and the material creaked as it stretched against the former Dark Lord's struggles. Panting against the pain and his condition, Revan opened and closed his hands, concentrating on the pain in his wrists and his stomach. The pain gave him a focus he'd lacked moments before because of Carth's intrusion and Revan closed his eyes, subtly masking his efforts through the Force as the straps on his wrists and ankles loosened. The restraints moved, as if by an invisible hand and unwound, freeing the former Sith Lord. Revan let out a steadying breath, grabbing the rails to his bed and pulling as he fought down a cry of agony. Pain seared his insides, threatening to drive him into unconsciousness but he fought against it, moving to sit up in his bed as he clumsily threw his legs over the side. Uncaring as to his state of dress, or lack thereof, Revan stood, letting the blanket fall as he staggered, nude across the small room that would normally have been used to house a mentally unstable patient. Bracing himself against the wall, Revan waited, knowing he couldn't shield that much pain from the bond he shared with Bastila.

"Why would the Jedi do such a thing to a prisoner, regardless of who or what he was? It goes against the very principles the Order was founded upon! Why would you go a step further and deceive me! Masters this is not the way of the Jedi. This war has been difficult but to go against our beliefs? To go against the very ideals of our Order-"

Bastila froze in mid-sentence, her question to the Jedi Councillors dying on her lips as her brow pinched in a half-frown. The Councillors looked from one another to the suddenly silent Padawan, assuming her sudden silence was from her conflicted feelings and not because she had sensed an agonizing amount of pain from Revan through the bond. The Padawan's gray eyes narrowed a fraction, flashing as she looked to the Jedi Councillors. Surely they wouldn't be torturing Revan at that very moment?

"Would you go a step further this time? Would you torture him? **Murder** him!?"  
Vrook rolled his eyes, weary of the Padawan's complaints. They'd done what was necessary in regards to Revan and while it wasn't anything to be proud of, they had given a monster a second chance and he'd thrown it away by choosing to recover his identity instead of remaining buried in the prison their neural blocks should have made. Still, they were Jedi and torturing and killing prisoners was beneath them.

"I highly doubt it will come to that, _Padawan_ Shan. The High Council will be notified of Revan's status this evening, morning their time and we will decide then the Dark Lord's fate."  
Bastila stared at Vrook silently, her jaw tightening as she fought down her newly acquired resentment of the Council. In a way she could understand why they had done what they had, it was one of the few options the Jedi had open to them in regards to their prisoner but to take away someone's identity against their will... If Revan had agreed to let the Council do as it had it would have been another matter, his first steps towards redemption perhaps but instead he had been condemned to slavery and ultimately death. The Padawan realized then the futility of the Council's actions regarding Revan. Even if the mindwipe had been successful, the Force had a will of its own and she could not argue with the results of that will. The Force had obviously been with Darth Revan until Malak had betrayed him. Choosing silence over letting the Council know what was occurring in the medical wards of the Enclave, the Padawan crossed her arms stubbornly, a sullen expression crossing her face. Let the Force decide what to do with Revan, she wouldn't deliver him into the hands of his executioners again. A flicker of uncertainty crossed Bastila's eyes as she schooled her features neutrally. Revan could very well get himself killed and she'd done too much for the man to simply let him kill himself. She wanted to see him live, see him realize that redemption wasn't impossible and perhaps even turn him. She couldn't decide when it had become important to her, whether it was when Revan had saved her on Taris from the Vulkars at his own expense, twice or if it had been when he had repaired the ship and made it possible for the others to escape Taris but she knew there was good in him, it hadn't all been destroyed, merely buried deeply within him and she wanted to see it; see him become the man, the Jedi he had been meant to be.

Revan rolled his eyes in disgust, a half-amused snort escaping from him as he sensed Bastila's thoughts. Redemption? Unlikely. They say some men have blood on their hands from what they'd done, he was swimming in an ocean of it and he had no thoughts of redemption. He'd given up redemption when he'd seen the heart of evil, of darkness on Malachor V, when the Trayus Academy's Core had given him a glimpse of the True Sith and he was not going to quail under the pressure of meaningless guilt. He'd killed too many, invested too much of his time and energy on his solution to the Sith matter to change his ways now. The Civil War between the Jedi Order and the Sith of Malak's Empire was a longtime coming and changes were needed in regards to the Jedi's inaction. A direct confrontation early in the Mandalorian Wars would have gained the respect of the Mandalorians and while many hundreds more Jedi would have died, they would have saved hundreds of billions of lives with their deaths and the Mandalorians would have survived, would have eventually sworn loyalty to the Jedi Order as they had to Ulic Qel-Droma nearly five decades before and the galaxy, not just the Republic would have been strong. Instead, both sides had been destroyed and weakness was all the galaxy seemed to produce.

Reigning in his wandering thoughts, Revan scowled, moving to the doorway and disgusted in the fact that it opened as he approached it. Had the Jedi truly underestimated him to such a criminal degree of incompetence? Revan moved through the doorway, the eyes of seven young and strong Jedi Knights turning to look at him in shock. Three of the Jedi, women, Revan noted turned their eyes away from his nudity in embarrassment while the three men and the other female Jedi merely kept their eyes locked with his, their hands moving to their weapons. Revan swayed slightly from the pain in his body but smirked at the Jedi, his left hand raising as if to slap an invisible person before him and sweeping to the side. The Jedi were all thrown to the wall, their bodies moved by an invisible hand and Revan chuckled weakly in amusement, pain lacing his laugh as the Jedi all were knocked unconscious. Pausing only to collect a dark blue cloak and a lightsaber that was passable to his favored fighting style, Revan moved on, the stolen Jedi's robe covering him as he moved, pulling the hood over his head and masking his presence heavily in the Force.

The lower section of the Jedi Enclave on Dantooine consisted mainly of quarters for the Jedi present, a small medical facility and storage space for food and other supplies. Revan moved through the familiar corridors silently, passing unsuspecting Jedi students and masters as he went, the cloak dragging on the floor at his feet and obscuring him from all scrutiny. Revan moved to the passageway leading out of the facility, pausing as a wave of pain struck him full force. Closing his eyes, Revan braced himself against the wall with one hand, breathing in and out slowly before he snapped his eyes open and moved off, his steps stiff and rigid. His guards were still unconscious but he was certain he was scheduled to have an unwelcome and unexpected visitor at any moment. The doors sealing the lower section of the Enclave opened and Revan gazed out over Dantooine's grassy plains, a warm breeze blowing into the opened doorway. Revan took a moment to take in a calming breath of fresh air before he moved off, his bare feet moving over the soft grass of Dantooine as he moved away from the Enclave and into the grassy wilderness of Dantooine's rolling upland hills. The grass was mixture of faded green and tan, Revan noted absently, the natural purple tall-grass native to the world far from the highland area the Jedi had built the Enclave in. Likely the reasoning for the location was to avoid the native Dantari people who were primitive even in comparison to the Sand-people of Tatooine. The primitive humanoid natives made their homes along the lowland rivers of Dantooine, never straying far into the highlands for fear of the massive flying ray-like creatures that floated over the mountains and highlands.

Revan walked for sometime before he came to a stop several miles northeast of the Enclave. Sitting down on a rock, Revan held a hand over his still-bandaged abdomen and let out a pained groan, his other hand bracing himself against the rock so he wouldn't simply fall over and die. Revan remained like that for some time, his eyes closed and pain etched on his features before he sensed a disturbance in the Force. Letting out a half-pained laugh, Revan knew the Jedi had discovered his absence and he took in a steadying breath, looking up and frowning. A Kath Hound stared at him from across the narrow ravine he had taken refuge in and it sniffed the air, following the scent of blood as it stalked ever closer to the wounded former Jedi. Revan let out a slow breath, pushing against the rock to stand and staggering in pain. He'd used most of his strength escaping and his abdomen burned in protest. Moving a hand to his lightsaber, Revan activated the stolen weapon, a bright green blade shooting forth much to the former Sith's disgust. He'd much preferred blue or red, or maybe even purple from time to time. Fighting off the errant and meaningless thought, Revan prepared himself, his concentration not on the Kath Hound before him but the other two accompanying it and trying to sneak up behind him while the one in front held his attention. Blasterfire sounded and Revan glanced to his left, spotting a huddled figure kneeling and taking aim on the Kath Hounds with a blaster rifle. The air around the figure shimmered as a stealth field dropped and Revan frowned as the Mandalorian warrior killed the three Kath Hounds stalking him before the warrior approached Revan slowly, his blaster rifle being discarded as he drew a vibroblade.

"Injured or not, Jedi. I've come to add another lightsaber to my collection."

Revan eyed the red armor of the Mandalorian critically, seeing that it was well-maintained and that two lightsabers were hanging from the Mandalorian's belt. Revan could feel the disturbance around him and knew there were other Mandalorians moving to attack him.

"Might I have the name of the warrior I am about to kill?"  
Revan asked with a smirk, his face covered in sweat and pale from pain, exhaustion and his injury. The Mandalorian chuckled, assuming a fighting stance as two of his comrades moved to attack Revan from behind. He hadn't killed two Jedi on Dantooine by being stupid.

"Sherruk of Clan Dyre."  
Revan tilted his head in acknowledgment, his right hand moving in a practiced gesture as he drew his lightsaber, snapping his right arm backwards as he allowed the Force to surround him. The lightsaber moved from his hand, a gesture Sherruk thought to be clumsiness on the Jedi's part before he saw the blade float in an arc, slicing through his two Mandalorian companions as their bodies dropped to the ground, the stealth fields failing as their headless bodies dropped with dull thuds. The green-bladed saber continued to move in a steady arc until it was once again in Revan's hand and the former Dark Lord gave Sherruk a simple, emotionless look that had the Mandalorian pausing in his assault. Perhaps the wounded Jedi wasn't as easy a kill as he'd thought. Sherruk gave a simple laugh, offering Revan a mocking salute before he turned and ran, his stealth field activating as he moved. Revan watched the retreating Mandalorian in confusion before he sneered. What the Hell kind of Mandalorian retreats? Revan decided to cut the coward's actions as well as his life short and took two steps forward, nearly doubling over in pain before he let his stolen saber fly. The saber spun end over end, striking an invisible obstacle in the back. Sherruk cried out in pain, falling over as the saber's green blade glowed in the shadows cast over the ravine. Revan moved slowly, stopping to look down at the dead Mandalorian in disgust. Any Mandalorian still bearing their Neo-Crusader armor would have to have been absent from Malachor V, that or amongst the few who ran instead of surrendered and Revan felt a familiar anger burning in him as he thought of those that had disregarded his orders to destroy their Basilisks and their armor. He, the man who held Mandalore's mask and defeated Mandalore the Ultimate in single combat.

Revan searched Sherruk's body, opting to use the two sabers the Mandalorian had taken from his previous Jedi kills as a replacement to the one he had taken from one of his guards. Revan was amused to see one blade was red and the other blue as he attached them to the belt he looted from Sherruk's corpse, as well as the Mandalorian's armor and clothing. Deciding to leave the helm in place over Sherruk's exposed corpse, Revan moved to the other two kills. Kath Hounds would move in and devour the coward and Revan hoped that the head would remain, a testament to Sherruk's cowardice. Discarding the stolen Jedi cloak and green lightsaber, Revan moved to the rock he'd been resting on before he was so rudely interrupted and he sat, holding his left arm absently over his abdomen as he thought over the matter. The Mandalorians were carrying a decent amount of supplies and he'd found a passable medkit on them. Revan shifted so he was sitting on the ground, leaning against the rock and slowly closing his eyes. The Jedi wouldn't be launching any search parties to find him, he was certain. They'd probably assume he would return for revenge and while the idea was appealing, Revan decided it would be wiser to let them bunker down and simply make his way to a spaceport. Fixing his gaze on the dead Mandalorians around him, Revan let out a steadying breath, letting the painkillers and stims from the Mandalorian's medkit run through his system. Maybe the Mandalorians had a base nearby with a ship he could steal. If he could get off-world, get access to his storage facility on Nar Shaddaa he would be set. He had armor, weapons and enough credits there to buy whatever he wanted, a perk to having been a Dark Lord and one he would take full advantage of once he found his way back to the city-covered moon. Collecting himself, Revan stood, the added weight of the Mandalorian armor pulling down on him though the pain in his gut was dulled, separated from his mind from the stims and the drugs in his bloodstream. Walking sedately, Revan held a looted Mandalorian blaster rifle in hand, his eyes moving warily to the edge of the ravine before he stepped out of the depression, moving into a nearby valley and down a fairly gentle slope in the hillside. Spotting a swoop bike, Revan moved to its side, seeing it was a Mandalorian design and smirked, climbing onto the craft he checked the logs, pinpointing the location of Sherruk's base camp before he started the swoop, moving quickly across the hillside and into an adjacent grouping of hills and low plateaus. He'd need a few days to recover, let the Force heal him before he would be up to taking on a few mercenaries and he needed a place to rest. Aiming the swoop bike in the direction of a small grove near where he and Malak had found the Starmap on Dantooine, Revan decided the ancient Rakatan ruins would make a good place to rest, not realizing that someone else had the same idea days before.

AN: Bit of a doublemeaning to the title of this chapter but I hope you all enjoyed... was a little uncertain of how to go about this but I overcame the writer's block. Merry Christmas and all that, consider this an early present.


	19. Chapter 18: Juhani

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"These... Rakatans think us demons, Malak. They see our ships and our soldiers and our powers and they cower like vermin when they could storm this temple with their numbers... They chose instead of confronting us to place the blame on one another and they continue their ancient civil war with little regard to our presence. Like the demons of our worlds, of our making we've been forgotten to them, ignored and pushed aside as they fight meaningless battles with one another, weakening themselves. The Elders said the Rakatans once ruled the galaxy, but were forgotten, leaving only the Star Forge and the Starmaps as their legacy... They are wrong. The Republic is their legacy, and they have kept the traditions well... The True Sith need not be strong to defeat the Republic, only patient."_

_Darth Revan to Darth Malak shortly following the reactivation of the Star Forge  
_

Chapter 18: Juhani

Night was an interesting time for Dantooine. The peaceful and temperate air the sunlight brought was lost in a night scape filled with unknown dangers and a chill that cut down to your very bones. Revan shivered slightly, his eyes weary and filled with a kindling rage. Anger and determination were about the only think keeping the former Sith Lord on his feet but he continued on, taking step after painful step towards the ancient grove he and Malak had discovered years before. The air's chill was due mainly to the relative altitude of the region as well as wind blowing across the plains in the lowlands, working its way upward and carrying the chill of the forests and rivers below. Moon and star lit the night scape, casting a luminescent pale blue against every rock, tree and blade of grass. Shadows moved amongst the expanse, their motions erratic and unpredictable as they moved to stalk prey or avoid becoming prey. Two golden eyes flashed in the darkness and Revan paused, glancing over his shoulder to the glowing eyes.  
"Be gone hound, I've neither the time nor the patience to deal with you."  
Revan allowed a subtle threat to carry on his words, the Force twisting the threat so the beast could understand the danger it was in. The eyes seemed to flash, flickering as they shifted before they closed and the shadow melted from his vision. Revan continued staring at the spot the creature had been in for a moment, wondering why he did not sense the creature depart before he felt a stab of pain in his gut and turned, tossing aside his curiosity and caution in favor of a temporary hideout. The grove was close and once there, he could build a fire and be at ease. Few Kath Hounds sought humans near an open flame, their senses alerting them to the smell of smoke and some ancient genetic memory telling the beasts to fear fire. Smart creatures, Revan decided as he glanced down at the lightsaber hanging from his belt. While the armor was weighting him down, making him slower and draining his strength, Revan knew it was necessary. He wasn't going to make a full recovery for days and while the Jedi wouldn't actively search for him they would keep their senses open. Armor and a blaster meant less energy using the Force and more for healing and concealment. Stealth, while not the Mandalorian's strong-point in most battles was taught to each young warrior and each knew enough about it to know when to exercise it. Mandalorians weren't the only race that taught their youth the importance and silently, barely visible in the night of Dantooine a predator stalked its prey, its yellow-golden eyes gleaming as the star and moonlight reflected on them, tracking the Mandalorian before her.

Canderous Ordo blinked away the sleep that had claimed him hours before, rising to his feet and looking down with little interest at the hulking Wookiee that shared the quarters of the _Ebon Hawk_ with him. While a challenge burned in his blood, giving him rage and clarity, Canderous was not a fool and he waited, biding his time for when he would seek Revan's, Mandalore's freedom. That Revan was born to a Mandalorian Clan was not so important. Mandalorian was not a race after the wars, the Taung that had build the Mandalorian ideals and built their home on the Mandalore system had become all but extinct, joining the Cathar and the Sith in their decline. Great wars marked the ends of their civilizations but Canderous held to the hope that his people would reclaim their lost honor, their lost glory and rebuilt, survive. All they needed was a single Mandalorian to pass on the teachings, to hold in his or her hands the mask of Mandalore to show that they were the leader of the Clans, the keeper of their ways. Mandalore's mask was more than simply armor, it was a symbol. Forged from _beskar (Mandalorian Iron) _the helm was nearly indestructible, strong and resilient and hard, a symbol of the Mandalorian people. It carried the glory of all Mandalorians for it had seen all of their strife, all of their glory and all of their honor. The mask had been forged by Mandalore the First and carried by every man, woman or Taung that dared to claim themself Mandalore. A rueful smirk crossed Canderous' lips as he recalled a Mandalorian that had tried to reclaim the title of Mandalore, only to be destroyed by a Sith assassin. There were several attempts to destroy the Mandalorian and all evidence pointed to Darth Revan's Sith as the culprits. It made even more sense now, Canderous decided; carefully strapping on his belt and running a hand through his gray hair.  
"There, nice and presentable."  
Canderous sneered as he hefted his heavy repeating blaster, the weapon as light as a pistol in his mind as he stalked through the _Ebon Hawk_, intent on finding a trader in the Jedi's disgustingly peaceful Enclave and getting a decent set of armor before he'd start showing the Jedi just what a single pissed of Mandalorian could do. Canderous' one-Mandalorian crusade against the Jedi Order was short-lived when he discovered from a local merchant that there were Mandalorian on Dantooine. Deciding an army of... more than one was better than one, Canderous moved to the Enclave's single public exit to the open highlands of the area surrounding the Enclave. A droid stopped him, stating that the Council had ordered none to leave the Enclave to which Canderous raised his over-powered blaster and fired a single shot. The protocol droid was no match for the powerful blast and shattered like glass under the shot, falling in smoldering pieces to the ground as Canderous turned the blaster once more and fired another shot into the door controls. The Republic and subsequently the Jedi had a stupid habit of making doors _emergency protected_ in case of a fire or some other pathetic mess their weakling people feared. As a result the failsafe in the door automatically opened the sealed and locked barricade and Canderous stepped out into the open fields of Dantooine, ignoring the Jedi that tried to intercept him. They didn't try stopping him, merely watched his departure in surprise and wariness.

An entire day of threatening and questioning local farmers brought Canderous the answers he sought. The Mandalorians on Dantooine were being led by a Mandalorian named Sherruk. A young Mandalorian at that. Canderous scowled as he stalked through the plains of Dantooine, his body covered with a light powered battle suit that lacked any heavy armor but would serve its purpose until he claimed the armor of the _dar'manda (A state of not being Mandalorian, a Mandalorian who loses their heritage. ) _back from their smoking and torn bodies. He would see then if they kept the standards of their people in regards to cleaning and maintaining their armor and perhaps reclaim a bit of their lost honor.

Mission had heard Canderous' rather loud departure hours before and was sitting on a cargo crate, two more stacked in front of her in a makeshift table as she dealt out pazaak cards, her eyes flickering as they looked past the cards, to her own thoughts. Taris hadn't been where she was born but she'd lived there for as long as she could remember and it was as good as her homeworld in her mind. Now, now it was gone. Burned to ashes and rubble at the whim of a man who Tauryn- Revan had trained. A man who was simply emulating the behavior of his teacher. She didn't know quite what to make of Revan in all honesty. It hurt to think her home was gone but then, she never really had a home, always sleeping in a new place each night, struggling to just get by with Big Z. The Beks, Gadon and the others were gone, dead but she still had Zalbaar and all because of Tauryn- because of Revan. She couldn't ignore that regardless of how angry she was at the Sith for destroying her home.

Zalbaar had little conflict with his lifedebt. He had offered and Revan had accepted, in a manner of speaking. That was all there needed to be said over the matter and the Wookiee spent his time cleaning out the damaged interior of the _Ebon Hawk_ and speaking with Mission while he awaited news on Revan's condition... until Revan had escaped. A troubled frown crossed the Wookiee's face as he pondered Revan's condition. The Jedi had locked down the Enclave and there were even Republic soldiers that had been brought down from the station as a result of Canderous' violent departure. The Council had deliberated for an hour over the matter before they chose to send Kaera Nurr out to find Revan, with Bastila's help of course. Kaera appeared indifferent though a chill was working its way up her spine as she recalled all that had been literally thrown at Revan over the course of their ordeal on Taris and she realized that if Revan had not been injured she and Bastila would never have been a match for the deposed Dark Lord. As it was, she had her doubts in her own abilities, finding her thoughts clouded by Carth's actions and those of Bastila and herself while on Taris. It was unpleasant to reflect upon but the simple truth was that the longer you spent away from the Jedi Order or the Republic, the more you forgot or ignored their rules. Something Revan and Malak had done and a mistake she hoped to never repeat.

Dantooine was as peaceful as always, wandering Kath Hounds, enraged by a corrupted power that seemed to taint the western grove near a set of ancient ruins was a likely place to start the search. Bastila had said as much to Kaera and the two Jedi made their way past a small group of Republic soldiers that were standing guard on the perimeter of the Enclave.

"I don't suppose you'd have any way of using the bond to find a way around the mental shielding Revan's been using?"  
Kaera asked, receiving a blank, cold look from the Padawan. The Knight frowned at the display of disrespect, stopping to turn fully to Bastila. The Padawan paused as well, meeting Kaera's glare head on with her own.

"We wouldn't be out here right now, Bastila if you had used that bond earlier to realize a Sith Lord was escaping when he had! You are not so ignorant as to believe he is not evil are you? How can you-"  
Bastila cut Kaera off with a furious scowl.

"It is not Revan, but his actions that are evil. Perhaps you are not as in tuned with his thoughts as I am but you can't honestly tell me you would be willing to wipe a man's memory, his entire life and then create it in the way you wished simply because you don't agree with him. We're Jedi, Kaera, not gods. What the Council has done is unnatural and very well criminal and while this is a time of war and desperate measures... what would all of our efforts be worth if we ourselves became as evil, as corrupted as the Sith? How many of your values are you willing to cast aside, how many of our ways will you ignore just to win this bloody war? All the Council has managed to do is vindicate Revan's actions thus far."  
Kaera stalked towards the Padawan, stopping when they were face to face and lowered her head slightly to glare, nose to nose directly into Bastila's eyes.

"We are not like them, Bastila. We do what is necessary for the good of the Republic and we are _nothing_ like Revan, we-"  
Bastila held Kaera's gaze firmly, interrupting the Knight.

"We are servants of the Force, not the Republic. The Republic is an ally, little else, Kaera. We take most of our members from the Republic, they give us credits and materials to build and maintain the Order and we act as escorts for their ambassadors, peacekeepers to internal struggles. It wasn't always so but that is what Revan tried to tell us, all of us so many years ago when the Mandalorians first invaded. Our duty is to the galaxy, not ourselves or the Republic. The Council chose against war when the Mandalorians invaded and look at how many died, how many of our brothers and sisters were torn apart by those- by those warriors and how we, the Jedi Order failed to do anything about it. How many worlds, how many people died because we chose inaction? Look how quickly the Order leapt to the defense of the Republic against Revan and Malak... how is it we can place judgement on the Sith when we ourselves have as many flaws?"

Bastila held Kaera's gaze, awaiting her companion's response. Kaera dismissed the Padawan's rant, not bothering to look too closely at the implications though even she was uncertain as to why the Jedi had so quickly chosen sides in this war. Revan was a warrior, yes but also understood the subtleties of warfare and diplomacy. He used threats and strength as a political tool but also loyalty and fear. Once good men were not loyal to Revan out of fear, they were loyal to him because he was their General, their leader and had given them what so few could during the Mandalorian wars. Victory. Revan was power and normal sentients could only stand in awe of the man while Jedi and Sith alike looked upon him with fear. Fear of what he was capable of when he lost himself to his rage. Fear of what he could become.

"Flaws or no, Bastila. We must choose a side in this war..."  
Kaera turned from Bastila, moving in the direction of the ancient ruins while Bastila stared blankly at the Knight, shaking her head slightly. If the Council continued to act as it did, if the Jedi Order continued to do what was _necessary_ there wouldn't be much of a difference which side they took. Sighing, Bastila closed her eyes, reaching out with her senses and searching the Force and her thoughts for any hint of where Revan might be. He unconsciously blocked her attempts though and Bastila knew that they would likely stumble right past the man and not even notice if he did not wish to be found. The search could take days before it would yield results.

Home was a concept few would make of the crime-filled slums of the Tarisian undercity, but it was home to her. The only place she could remember where she was held and loved. A bittersweet moment that was mixed with the greatest of pains and the darkest depths of depravity. Taris had been home though and to hear it was under threat from a planet-killing maniac was enough to have her on edge. To learn that the monster had destroyed her home filled her with both anger and relief. Relief that the world, the backdrop of what was done to her was gone but anger that someone would take away the place where she had been raised. A life of misery was still a life, hers and her family's. Her mother and father had taken her there, raised her and protected her for as long as they could until that bastard Xor had come along, had murdered her father and enslaved she and her mother. He was a Mandalorian too, a member of their slave armies that had been taken from the Twi'lek homeworld of Ryloth. A man who hated the Cathar, hated any race the Mandalorians hadn't taken as slaves.

Closing her eyes, Juhani clenched her jaw, her teeth grinding together in silent rage as she caught the scent of the intruder in her grove, in her sanctuary. The scent was oddly familiar and she frowned in confusion, using the shadows of the night to blend in, stalking the intruder. Rage boiled within her as she caught sight of the trespasser, seeing the red of his Mandalorian armor in the light that was cast from the stars above. The lightsabers at the man's waist did not surprise her, she knew well the Mandalorian before her, regardless of never seeing his face. Sherruk, the leader of the two Mandalorians she had slain earlier that day. With a calm that surprised her, Juhani stalked the Mandalorian, pausing when Sherruk stopped to look behind him, look directly at her. For a moment she had thought she was discovered and froze, her yellow eyes reflecting golden in the starlight and she stared back into Sherruk's face, relieved the Mandalorian had removed his mask. He did not have the advantage then, did not have the ability to see as clearly as she could in the night and he dismissed her as a Kath Hound simply stalking him in the night. Nothing a Mandalorian would concern themselves over.

Juhani could feel the danger of confronting Sherruk, a warning carrying through the Force and she closed her eyes, allowing the night to hide her form as the Mandalorian moved on, heading directly to her grove. A feral smile curved Juhani's lips as she moved swiftly and silently ahead of the Mandalorian and to her grove. She would wait for him there, wait until he could see clearly in the fire of the camp she had built the two she had slain of his race. Then, she would show herself, show him his own doom before she would take his life, as she would every Mandalorian.

Revan moved slowly through the night scape of Dantooine, his steps faltering as he felt Bastila and Kaera trying with marginal success to stalk him. Cursing under his breath, Revan hid his presence in the Force, a nearby glow of a campfire causing him to slow his steps further as he drew the Mandalorian blaster from the holster by his thigh. Revan noted absently that it was a Mandalorian Ripper before he raised the weapon, wincing against the pain in his abdomen as he stalked slowly towards the campfire, his eyes checking his peripherals as he moved cautiously forward.

The first clue that Revan had that something was wrong was the scent of death. While the fire and smoke and the crackling of dried wood as it smoldered played with his senses, pain heightened his focus and he turned as if he knew exactly where to find it to see a corpse of a fully armored Mandalorian in the blue-tinted armor of a Neo-crusader. The smell was fresh, a hint of charred flesh still hanging in the air though the precise hole burned into the armor was long since cooled, blackened against the armor's blue. A shift in the wind and Revan turned his brown eyes to another corpse, this one twisted in a defensive stance that held in its death, telling of the Mandalorian warrior's final moments. The long, thin black scorch along the chest that slashed through the bodysuit beneath the Mandalorian armor but only scorched the armor told of the Mandalorian's quick and likely quiet death. His grip tightening on his Mandalorian ripper, Revan leveled the disruptor, turning and pointing it directly in the surprised face of his stalker as a sneer crossed his lips.

Juhani was startled by the sudden, swift movement of the Mandalorian before her. That he had a face and not the masks the other Mandalorians had worn caused her to pause when he turned, facing her with a sneer as he pointed his pistol directly between her eyes. Time seemed to slow and the Cathar moved her hand steadily, her movements painfully slow as she thumbed the switch to her lightsaber, a blade of blood red snapping to life and deflecting the shot that would have claimed her life. A hand, impossibly strong grasped her wrist and twisted and she joined the cry of pain from her attacker with one of her own as her weapon spun off into the darkness, laying to rest on the ground, its blade still glowing against the rocks it landed beside. The coppery tang of blood reached Juhani's senses and she fought the pain in her wrist to slash her hand across the Mandalorian Ripper aimed at her. The weapon fell to join her own saber and she curled her hands, clawing at the Mandalorian before her, though his armor took the force of her attacks. She knew he was injured, an old injury but one that gave her the advantage. Sherruk was fast, not as fast as she was but stronger and while his movements were slow and weighed by pain, she could tell he knew what he was doing as he intercepted her hands, grunting quietly in pain as he fixed her with a gaze of pure hatred.

Revan saw only a shadow stalking him, then a blade of red. Thinking a Sith assassin had somehow managed to learn of his existence, Revan made a mental note to track down Darth Sion and Nihilus and teach them the finer points of agony before disposing of them. He knew Darth Traya had not organized this assassination, if she had he would already be dead. Revan winced as his stomach protested the swift movement required to save his life and he was overcome with a wave of blinding agony before his pistol was lost to him and his opponent attacked him in a manner more befitting a wild animal than a trained assassin, though Revan could see the subtle calculations in each movement and knew they were not random attacks.

"This is my grove! My place of darkness!"  
A voice, heavily accented hissed. Revan drew his head back and slammed it forward into his assailant's face, causing the woman to fall back. A feral grin lit the former Sith Lord's features as he twitched in pain. He had a real old fashioned brawl on his hands and while he wasn't in top shape it would be a lot of fun if he lived. Stalking forward with a staggering limp, Revan drove a powerful open palm into the chest of his attacker, confirming his suspicions that his assailant was female while continuing to knock her off balance.

"Darkness? You think you know darkness, you think yourself a Sith?"  
Juhani was startled by the sound of the Mandalorian's voice, the strength behind it and she barely avoided a crushing blow that would likely have knocked her unconscious as she twisted, grasping the Mandalorian's armor and pulling. A pained roar was her reward and she barely had time to register the small victory before a blow struck her across the face, knocking her nearly senseless.  
"True evil, true darkness does not burn in your veins like a fire, it is patient, it flows as easily as water down a mountainside."  
Revan struck with a calculated and powerful blow, stunning his would-be assassin. His smirk had long-since turned to a sneer as he dove towards his target, almost losing her as she tried sluggishly to move away from him charge. Both crashed to the ground, pain burning in each before Juhani felt a painful pressure pressing down on her, invoking memories of a childhood best left forgotten. Revan slapped away Juhani's flailing hands, pinning them with a pained grunt as he held them at bay with his left arm and grasped his opponent's throat with his right hand. A subtle application of pressure for a short amount of time had weakened the struggles slightly and Revan looked down into the shadowed face of his assailant, seeing the golden-yellow eyes filled with blind terror. Revan frowned as he studied the eyes, his weight preventing Juhani's escape as he effectively pinned her. Pain seared his insides, almost causing him to pass out in a dead faint but he held on to consciousness, prepared to rip out the throat of his Sith attacker with his bare hands before he saw her eyes, eyes the same color as a Sith's who's were corrupted by darkness, but their shade natural. The Force swelled around his attacker, corrupted, darkened perhaps but not in the same manner of a Sith assassin, not a trained one anyways. Revan felt the panic in the young woman pinned beneath him and a horrified look crossed his face as he realized what the woman was thinking.  
"Have some sense, girl. I'm a Mandalorian, not common scum."  
Revan's words unsurprisingly offered little comfort to Juhani and she struggled, accepting the pain and screaming in rage, anguish and fear. Revan felt bile rising in his throat, his eyes widening as he caught the features of his assailant in the light of the campfire. A Cathar? Surely it couldn't be- Pain, pain the likes of which he'd felt a dozen times before seared his insides. That kind of pain though cannot be ignored and Revan fought down the urge to vomit from the blinding agony, finding himself on his back several yards from Juhani as she stood, her hands outstretched and an outraged and slightly frightened expression on her face.

"Mandalorian? You think I care what you are? I shall tear you limb from limb, you filth. I will watch you suffer gladly before I would submit to your race. You think I am weak? You think I cannot-"  
Revan calmly raised his hand, sending a powerful blase of Force-lightning towards the Cathar. The blue of the lightning reflected in the surprised Cathar's eyes before she was knocked off her feet to land once more on her back, tendrils of smoke and lightning coursing over her as she convulsed in pain. Revan's eyes gleamed in the darkness, veins pulsating from restrained pain as he stood, blood steadily leaking from between the plates of his armor as he raised a trembling hand, Juhani's still active lightsaber floating to his hand gracefully as its crimson blade glowed in the darkness.

"I am so much more than a Mandalorian, child. I am power, I am darkness, I am strength."  
Revan held the blade to Juhani's throat, his body swaying slightly though the blade was steady. His outburst of power had given away his position and he could vaguely sense Bastila and Kaera rapidly approaching his position. They wouldn't make it before either he or the Cathar was dead, though. He wouldn't simply roll over and die if it was his time, he would die on his feet.

"Get up! Get on your feet if you're so powerful. I've had enough of these games, enough of the Jedi and the Republic and the Sith. If you wish to be strong, if you wish to live get on your feet and fight!"  
The scent of blood was strong and Juhani slowly stood, half dazed as she trembled from the pain still coursing through her. The smell was so familiar she paused, studying the man before her who was so much more than a Mandalorian and she remembered, remembered the scent of the man who'd rescued her on Taris all those years ago, who'd maimed her master and took her away, to the Jedi.

"Who are you?"  
Juhani asked warily, pain searing her entire body as she stood shakily. She could see Revan's ashened features, the pale skin as his lifeblood left him and suddenly the battle was not so satisfying. Even if he was a Mandalorian or Sith, he was injured, grievously and to defeat him would be a small task. At least it would have been had he been any other man. Revan sneered as he stared at the Cathar in what could only be described as pure hatred and Juhani felt a chill travel up her spine as she recalled his words. Staring into his eyes was like staring into the heart of darkness, the heart of the Force and she felt suddenly dizzy, nauseated at the thought of how far she could have fallen. She suddenly wished to return to the Jedi, to seek atonement so she would not become what she saw before her.

"The Lord of Revenge."  
Revan muttered, his eyes burning golden as he glared, the pain forcing him to his knees as he grunted, his left hand falling to his middle. Blood soaked his gauntlets and Revan looked up in silent rage at the Cathar. He didn't care at that moment who she was, he had hesitated when he thought it was Juhani and he had paid for that mistake. He would die on his knees now because of it, to some undisciplined amateur. What an end that would make, Revan lamented silently. Juhani's eyes were wide as she stared down at the man. Revanchist, the name the Mandalorians had given the leader of the Jedi who fought against them. The Lord of Revenge, Darth Revan. The irony that his true name meant revenge was not lost on Juhani and she stared in shock at Revan, the man who had saved her from a life of slavery and torment.  
"R- Revan? Y- **You** are Revan? They- they told us you were dead..."  
The Force had offered no protest to the man's claim and Revan sneered up at Juhani, deciding to merely look his death in the face if he was going to die as he was. Juhani did not move though, as she stared down at him, her form trembling in a mixture of emotions she could not name. She owed this man everything, owed him so much, wanted to tell him so much and she wondered if it was too late. Dropping to Revan's side, Juhani knelt before Revan, unconcerned by her still active weapon as it rested in his right hand, hanging down to the ground. The deposed Sith Lord did not have the strength to raise the blade and he merely narrowed his eyes, a twitch telling of the effort it took to remain relatively upright on his part.

"I-"  
Juhani began, her hands resting on Revan's shoulders as she looked into his face with an uncertain expression. Revan tried to raise his borrowed blade, Juhani's hand moving from his shoulder to the weapon and effortlessly removing it from his hand as she deactivated the blade.

"I- I'm not sure if you remember me but- but I owe you a great debt, Revan. Even if you are a Mandalorian I cannot ignore what you did for me on Taris..."  
Revan stared at the Cathar silently as he silently laughed at the irony. Of all the stupid coincidences in the galaxy he would have to end up in a near-fatal battle with someone who actually still respected him and wanted him to live. Silently, Revan wondered to the behavior of the girl. She had obviously touched darkness, or more accurately been touched by darkness but still she held to her values, held to the debt she thought she owed him for taking her from Taris. She owed him nothing for that, he would never have turned his back on such a scene, even as a Sith Lord.  
"Juhani..."  
Revan's voice was pained but firm and the Cathar looked pleased a moment before she lowered her head, averting her eyes from him as if he was something to be in awe of. It sickened Revan, or maybe it was the hole in his gut, either way he wanted to vomit and he swallowed back the bile in his throat, shivering slightly as he looked down to the ground. He would live, he was certain. With Bastila so close she would probably save him once more and he didn't know if it would be more a mercy to bleed out and be done with it. He was in no mood to be the Jedi's slave once more and to be silently snuffed out would probably be better for them all in his mindset. That was until he saw the look in Juhani's eyes. Saw that she viewed him as a hero, a savior. He had never been a hero, at least not in his own eyes. He saw the Mandalorian wars from both points of view, saw that as the Republic's savior he was his own people's harbinger of doom. The look of adoration he'd seen in Juhani's eyes was undeserved and his honor would not abide it. He didn't deserve to be looked on as a hero, he was only a warlord, a warrior who fought because he knew of no other way. He could not fight the True Sith as he had the Mandalorians, could not fight an enemy that was there but could not be seen so he turned his eyes to the Republic, hoping to make it strong, make it secure or if nothing else, make it wary. The Republic seemed to think with the Mandalorian Clans defeated that they were safe, such foolish ignorance should have been criminal and Revan closed his eyes, taking in a calming breath as he collapsed to the ground, wondering if he would even remember who he was when he awoke. No doubt the Jedi would keep him sedated until they tried to destroy him again. Revan saw Juhani's alarmed expression and ignored it as he allowed unconsciousness to claim him. He was so bloody tired, what did it matter anymore?

Bastila and Kaera arrived only a few minutes after Revan became unconscious to find him stripped of his armor as a young Cathar woman tried to bind his newly opened injuries. Bastila's eyes widened at the sight of Revan's ashened features and she quickly moved to help while Kaera cautiously approached, her eyes narrowed as she stared at the Cathar. She could feel the taint of the Darkside on the young woman and that she was so frantically trying to save a former Sith Lord had her igniting her azure blade.

"Step away from him, Cathar."  
Kaera ordered, ignoring the exasperated look Bastila sent her as the Padawan aided as best she could in stopping the flow of blood. The bond was there, but weakened and Bastila took hold of it, allowing her own powers to heal Revan as she tried to help Juhani. Juhani froze at the hostile tone of the Jedi, looking up with a troubled expression as she motioned down to Revan.

"He needs help, Jedi. We must-"  
Juhani saw the Jedi advancing and moved to stand, her hand pulling her blade from her belt as she stared down the Jedi warily, her gaze flickering to Revan and the Padawan she recognized almost instantly.

"Bastila, tell her, please. I- he must live."  
Bastila looked up from Revan's wound to the Cathar, knowing the young woman from her own training on Dantooine before she looked back to Kaera, a look of utter contempt crossing her features.

"Kaera it is obvious that Juhani is not a threat to Revan, would you please put your weapon away and give me a hand? I know you may not agree with this but Revan is the key to stopping the Sith and as Jedi we cannot simply stand by and allow him to die."  
Kaera's face was blank as she stared at Juhani, contempt flickering in her eyes.

"And if we turn our backs to this traitor, she will kill us. We cannot-"  
Revan's eyes flickered open and rolled slightly in annoyance.

"Bleeding to death, here. Could you all please be civil until I am either stable or dead so I don't have to listen to it."

Surprised by the tone in Revan's voice and the simple fact that he was conscious, Kaera did not sense the threat behind her and crumpled to the ground as a blue-armored Mandalorian stood over her, its faceless neo-crusader mask taking in Revan in Sherruk's armor, the Cathar and Bastila, kneeling at Revan's side.

"What?"  
Canderous asked, smirking as he removed his helm and nodded to Bastila. Bastila was shocked at the Mandalorian's approach, wondering if all Mandalorians were as skilled in stealth before she turned her eyes back down to Revan while Juhani tensed. She had no time to worry about where the brute had come from or where he'd gotten the armor. Revan offered a weak greeting when he saw Juhani's tense and uncomfortable expression. She needed to know Canderous was an ally.

"Canderous, good to see you."  
Canderous nodded, his smirk growing as he tapped a communicator on his wrist. Mandalore Revan would be even more pleased with what he had planned next.

"You there kid?"  
Canderous asked into his wrist communicator. Static and what sounded like grumbling sounded over the comm before Mission Vao's voice answered in an annoyed voice.

"Yea, me and Big Z are here. You find him yet?"

Canderous rolled his eyes in equal annoyance.

"I wouldn't be calling if I hadn't. You have our coordinates?"  
Mission checked the controls of the _Ebon Hawk_ frowning as she tried to familiarize herself with the controls. Carth was speaking with the Jedi Council and Big Z was right beside her, his furry hands taking the controls of the _Ebon Hawk_ as it lifted into the air. They'd have to be fast if they wanted to avoid the Jedi and she wondered briefly if they were doing a smart thing, giving Revan freedom. Canderous seemed to be all for it and had even bothered to let her in on his plan when he'd contacted her hours before but a small part of her, the sensible part wondered if Revan could be trusted. Pushing the mistrust away, Mission acknowledged Canderous and moved to the back of the _Hawk_ to get the medical bay ready. They wouldn't be able to find a facility as well-equipped as the Jedi's anywhere close but she couldn't turn Revan over to the Jedi, not after what Bastila told her they'd tried doing to him the last time he was in their care. Having your identity erased was just... scary and she wouldn't even wish it on Malak.

Revan floated in and out of consciousness for the several minutes it took the _Ebon_ _Hawk _to reach them but with Canderous' and Bastila's support was able to walk to the landing ramp as it lowered. Glancing back at Kaera and then to Bastila, Revan frowned thoughtfully as he met Canderous' eyes. Juhani stood back, warily eyeing Canderous though she caught Revan's gaze and new immediately what the deposed Sith Lord was thinking.

"Absolutely not."  
Bastila's clipped and cultured voice interrupted Revan's train of thoughts as he moved his eyes from Kaera's unconscious from and looked down at her with an annoyed frown.

"Don't you dare give me that look, I know exactly what you were thinking and if you want my help at all you are not going to kill her."  
Revan sighed, knowing he should shield his thoughts better before he shrugged at Canderous and the two moved up the ramp while Bastila scowled at the two warriors. Turning, Bastila moved to Kaera's side, dragging the unconscious young woman beside the fire with Juhani's help before they both moved towards the _Hawk._

"If you don't mind my asking, Bastila... How- how is all of this possible and where will we go?"

Bastila glanced at the young woman beside her, knowing she was about to throw her career as a Jedi and all hopes of becoming a Jedi Knight away with what she was going along with but knowing she couldn't trust the Council with Revan's care.

"Revan was severely injured when Malak betrayed him... I- I managed to save his life but barely and it became necessary for the Republic soldiers that retrieved the escape pod he and I were in to believe Revan was dead... I was told by the Council his mind was too badly damaged to ever be fully repaired and they tried to put a new identity within him, tried to force him to become someone he was not. I- I'm not entirely sure how much of it was true or not but Revan is under the impression they forced the mindwipe onto him and as he has reclaimed his identity, I am inclined to agree with him. I- I'm ashamed to say this but I do not trust the Jedi Council with his care... and we should find an alternate means of care for him..."  
Juhani looked surprised a moment as she considered the actions of the Council before a look of anger crossed her face. The Jedi had betrayed all of their students with what they'd done to Revan by casting aside the tenets they lived by to gain a potential ally. It was not the way of the Jedi and she found herself disgusted by the thought. The Jedi had raped Revan's mind and she could understand that kind of violation all too well.

"If its any consolation... I do not think Quatra knew of-"  
Juhani locked eyes with Bastila, a fierce look burning in their yellow depths as she tried to snap at the Padawan about how she did not care about her deceased Master.

"She's still alive..."  
Bastila said softly, soothingly and Juhani's tense shoulders eased slightly, a relieved look crossing her features before they hardened.

"It does not matter, Bastila. What matters is getting Revan treated and back to strength. After, we can decide what our next step should be..."  
Bastila nodded silently, wondering if she was making a magnificently foolish mistake before she and Juhani moved into the _Hawk_, the landing ramp sealing behind them as Canderous quickly took control of the craft and plotted an escape course as Jedi and Republic fighters were launched from the Enclave and the orbiting defense platform to intercept them. Evading the fighters proved to be annoying to Canderous as he was urged by the spoiled Jedi Princess not to harm any of their pursuers and Canderous relented, only because Revan seemed to respect the young woman and he did not wish to invoke Revan's wrath by upsetting the Padawan. He'd had a wife and family himself before the wars and knew all too well the duel Revan and Bastila fought with one another. Smirking slightly at the memory of his wife, Canderous set the _Ebon Hawk's_ course for Nar Shaddaa and entered hyperspace, leaving the pursuing Jedi and Republic fighters far behind. He had some contacts on Nar Shaddaa and he knew they had some of the best medical facilities on the Rim. If you had the right amount of credits.

AN: I've started adding the little quote headers as a way to shed light on the reasoning and character behind Revan and some of the others in the KOTOR universe I tried to set up, hope its not too... confusing...


	20. Chapter 19: Crossroads

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"There's an old saying on a primitive border world I was on once... It says when you look into the dark abyss, the abyss smiles back at you..."_

_Darth Revan to Darth Malak in regards to the Trayus Academy Core_

Chapter 19: Crossroads

Revan absently rubbed his stomach, grimacing as he shifted slightly in the single medical bed that made up the _Ebon Hawk's_ medical bay. Without a target to take his anger and frustration on, Revan decided it was best to sit as still as possible while the others decided what to do with him. Bastila taking his side during the encounter and even coming along was a surprise but he supposed she figured keeping an eye on him was better than him running around unsupervised. Not that it would make a difference who he killed or didn't kill. Mission had been a surprise as well. He'd figured the young Twi'lek would be so overcome with grief and anger that she would forget about him. That she came after him spoke of the Twi'lek's character, and her youth. If she were older, wiser; she would have known better than to try saving him. The Wookiee had sworn an oath and would keep it, Revan knew and Canderous was... a Mandalorian. He could be trusted so long as Revan remained strong, or as strong as he could be while suffering from a blasterbolt to the gut. Juhani would present a problem though. The Cathar was emotional, conflicted and until she came to a decision as to where she stood in regards to the Force, Revan knew she would forever be a danger to him; a possible ally Bastila could recruit against him if she ever went through with her foolish notion of taking him back to the Jedi. At least Bastila was beginning to understand she didn't stand a chance against the likes of Malak or himself. Perhaps she would begin training to overcome her inexperience.

"Really, must you _always_ plot to stab me in the back?"  
Bastila asked wearily, entering the medical bay as she frowned down at Revan. He hadn't killed Kaera and while it could have been a simple ploy to get her to go along with him, she knew she couldn't stay far from his side so long as his life was in danger. His life was in even more danger while in the care of the Jedi Order and she found herself conflicted though she resolved to do what was right and try to save her enemy.

"I had thought we would be clear on my position, Bastila. I am the Dark Lord of the Sith... or the rightful one anyways and I will not rest until I have regained my title, restored my empire's strength and laid waste to any who would oppose me. While honor dictates that I... owe you for saving my life, it does not mean I won't try turning you to my cause. In fact, I'd be a lair if I said I had no interest at all in you."  
Revan eyed Bastila, seeing her tense and flush slightly under his stare.

"Oh grow up, Padawan. I've no- well, little interest in _that. _Your Battle Meditation is a gift few Jedi have and none of my Sith can wield it with the ease... the natural ability you have. I daresay it impressed me when I was the Dark Lord."

Rolling her eyes, Bastila crossed her arms across her chest subconsciously, making a mental note to wear her cloak the next time she visited Revan. The man was truly vulgar and no matter how much he tried to flatter her she would not give in. Still... he was in excellent shape and his features were pleasing to a part of her, but she was a Jedi and such thoughts were beneath her. Or so she kept telling herself.

"I've already made this clear, Revan. I will not turn on the values of the Jedi Order and become a Sith as you and Malak have. I will not allow evil to dictate my actions."  
Revan's lips turned down into a frown as he thought over what the Padawan had said. She was young, though not too young that he wouldn't indulge himself in admiring her physique but what she'd just said was disturbing to a part of him. Had he allowed the True Sith to dictate his actions by trying to become a Sith Lord? Had he made a colossal mistake? More than likely, but second-guessing never got anything done. If he'd had any doubts they'd been burned away years before in the ashes of a dozen worlds. He _had_ to be doing the right thing. Whatever conscience he had left wouldn't abide it otherwise. Curious, Revan glanced over towards Bastila, meeting her eyes as he asked slowly, uncertain.

"Why did you chose to save- What- what exactly do you see in me that is worth saving?"  
Surprised by the openness of the question, Bastila remained silent, studying Revan's eyes. The eyes of a mass murderer and she felt the familiar chill that traveled up her spine at the thought of what he had done, what he could very well still do.

"I saw a man who was wounded, dying and needed help."

It was true, she'd seen Revan's death and it troubled her. Troubled her that a man who'd had such potential had fallen so far, had become such that he was a mockery of the good man he'd been. Had it been Malak or Bandon or any other Dark Jedi she would have done the same. It was in her nature and while she had doubts as to the wisdom of her decision, she would never stand by while another simply died if it was in her power to do something to save them. Contradictory in a way since she'd allowed Revan to kill dozens of Sith and Vulkars but their deaths were fast, violent and overall unavoidable.

"You saw something else?"  
Revan stated more than asked but the question was clear and the Padawan narrowed her eyes slightly, annoyed that he would press an issue she had already answered as well as she wished.

"I suppose the better question, _Lord_ Revan is why you haven't murdered me or any of the others? I would be under the impression that we are all too weak to compare to your strength and we all merely hold you back."  
Revan's jaw tensed as he stared into Bastila's annoyed gaze, the gray reflecting a faint blue in the dim lighting of the medical bay. He was struck a moment by her beauty before pushing it to the back of his mind for later analysis.

"The others have their uses and there is something to be said of loyalty. Loyalty in itself is a form of strength and allows me to overlook certain weaknesses and you, Bastila? I see in you potential. I could lie and say I keep you around because you are pleasing to my eyes or because this bond we share makes me feel more powerful, more alive but that is only part of why I abide your foolish notions of redemption. It is in your nature to help others, whether it is how you were raised before joining the Jedi or if it goes further than that, it makes your Battle Meditation that much more effective and I see in you, the potential for great or terrible things. I merely want to stand at your side and see what you will chose when the time comes to make a choice. I've no interest in killing you until you become a threat to me, or a hindrance and so far you are neither."  
Startled slightly by the cold calculation in Revan's voice, Bastila turned her gaze from his eyes, staring down at the life support console Revan was hooked up to, pretending to observe its display. What Revan was speaking of was troubling and foreign to her but at the same time so familiar. She had felt stronger since forming the bond with Revan, felt her very blood boil to an intensity she'd never felt before and she was afraid to admit that she liked the rush, the power she could feel at her fingertips. Revan's power. Somehow the Force had tied their essence, their souls together and she could feel a hint of Revan's power. A part of her wondered if it was the Darkside or simply Revan. He had always been powerful, even before his fall and she absently raised her hand to his face, gently caressing his cheek while Revan flinched at the unfamiliar gesture. She could understand the conflict he felt at having that kind of power, how hard he must have resisted it before darkness took a hold of him but he could still be saved and she would do all she could.

"I pity you, Revan. I- some might envy your power, your strength but I- I pity you. It will be the death of you."

Revan stared at Bastila as if she'd grown an extra head, tense under her gentle caress as he gazed uncertainly into her glistening eyes. She'd obviously had some epiphany. That or her moods were shifting as frequently as the gravitational tides of the Maw Cluster. What she'd said was troubling and loathe as he was to admit it, true. He'd cursed the Force, his own strength and skill before when the weight of the Mandalorian Wars was pressing down on him, when he loathed himself almost as much as he loathed that wretched slaver Xor for what he was doing to his own people simply because he was the only one who could do anything about it. Feeling weak for his doubts, Revan pushed them away, clenching his jaw as he focused on the anger her words brought up within him.

"I am not one to feel pity, Padawan. It is a weak and useless emotion and you'd best leave it behind you if you wish to contest with the likes of Malak. Malak is due more pity than I because his fall was not his own doing, but mine. I chose my path, Bastila and I will walk it. I do not shy from the responsibilities I took upon myself and I will not cower in the face of my own deeds like Malak once did."

Surprised by the mention of Malak, Bastila wiped her eyes, fighting the urge to weep for Revan and his fallen Jedi. Her own brothers and sisters in the Force. The Jedi were supposed to be a family, not enemies and because of Revan, neither side would stop until the other was annihilated. A dangerous and morally questionable campaign on the Jedi's part as the Sith seemed to have endless resources and the Jedi only had what the Republic allowed them to have. Something clicked in Bastila's mind at that moment as she gazed down at Revan with a dawning realization.

"This was never about revenge or retribution or even darkness was it? This was all about power?"

Revan frowned at the Padawan, his expression showing he did not follow her realization.   
"This war is about strength. About the _Jedi_ if you will call Force sensitives nothing else; being able to dictate what they have and do not have. I did not want another war like the one the Mandalorians brought to engulf the galaxy again and if I had not done what I had, the Jedi and the Sith alike would be under the mercy of the Republic, where a single senator could sway the very fate of both Orders. Jedi should be in charge of Jedi, not slaves to the Republic and the ideals they dictate upon us. As a people we exist outside of their understanding and should also exist outside of their jurisdiction. I lost many a thousand men and women because of the Republic's policies. Many Jedi and while I lost many as the Dark Lord, it was because of my choices not some inexperienced Senator who wants only popularity by being a _General_. Bloody worthless politicians."

Revan held Bastila's gaze, seeing she was mulling over what he had said and wanting to end the conversation on his own terms. As far as he was concerned the discussion was over and whatever fate Bastila had was her own concern, not his. He would guide her as best he could, allow her to learn what he had to teach until she decided whether she would join him willingly or under duress. There was no other option, his way had to be the only way or all those deaths would be meaningless. A pang, deep in Revan's chest drew a frown from the deposed Dark Lord but he pushed it aside, simply muttering as he closed his eyes.

"My way is the only way... it has to be..."

Bastila frowned down at Revan, seeing his breathing slow and even out as he fell into a more restful sleep than a man who'd been responsible for as many deaths as he deserved and she resisted the urge to rouse him, merely looking down on the slightly older human with a slightly troubled expression. She would have to speak to Juhani, see what the Cathar's views were on the Jedi before she could openly speak out against Revan, especially in the company of Canderous. Moving to check the medical instruments, Bastila allowed her thoughts to trail to the tantalizing and terrifying glimpses she'd caught of Revan's mind and shuddered slightly, both in revulsion and something she couldn't quite name. Anticipation perhaps? She couldn't honestly say and she pushed the feeling aside, more slowly than she would have liked as she moved from the medical bay, frowning at Mission as the young Twi'lek absently tossed a hydrospanner up and down in the air.

"Hey Bas..."  
Mission said quietly, setting the tool aside as she stood, brushing imaginary dirt from herself. Bastila frowned disapprovingly, her eyes narrowed as she studied the younger woman for a moment before speaking.

"Mission, I understand this is a difficult time for you but I have to warn you about who and what Revan is and what he is capable of-"  
Mission cut Bastila off, her expression more defeated than anything else as she replied in a sedate tone.  
"He's capable of what Malak did to Taris, I know Bastila but- He saved Big Z, saved us all from Taris when there was no reason for him to come back for us. He could have simply taken the _Hawk_ and left us to die with the rest of my home- but- but he didn't. He came back for us and that makes him a friend, regardless of who he was- is. I couldn't let the Jedi try to kill his mind again, you can't call it anything else and you know you couldn't either. Otherwise you wouldn't be here."

Bastila's frown was smothered slightly by the young girl- woman, she reminded herself's reasoning and she nodded absently as she looked upon the Twi'lek in a new light, respect reflecting in her eyes. That Mission could so easily overlook what had happened on Taris to do what she thought was right for a friend, regardless of how foolish that notion was, spoke greatly of her character, of her wisdom despite her youth.

"That is... a very admirable notion Mission and any of us would be blessed to call you a friend but- but you must understand that Revan is a master of manipulation. He was good once, yes, but his actions are tainted by darkness; the same darkness that destroyed Taris and while the good man he was may still be there, buried, we cannot ignore the evil that dwells within him."

Mission rolled her eyes, resisting the urge to stick her tongue out at Bastila.

"Geeze, I'm not a kid, Bastila. I'm not stupid you know. I know who he was and I'm smart enough to not go in there and have a heart to heart with him its just- I miss Tauryn and regardless of what the Jedi did to him and how much of it was manipulation I saw a good man in him and I liked him. I like to think that man is in Revan as well... and if you don't expect the best from someone, how can you deal with them without wanting to kill them? Isn't that just as bad as trying to kill them?"

Bastila rose a brow in honest surprise. Mission was young but obviously well-versed in the ways of the galaxy... to a point. Her ignorance of the Force and the corruptive power of the darkside could use some work but she had a basic understanding and sometimes that was all it took to grasp the notion of the Force's influence.

"Revan was always powerful, always close to the Force. Some of us within the Order believed it dictated his action to an extent and I just want you to be careful, Mission. I'm not forbidding you from seeing him or anything."  
Mission scowled slightly, crossing her arms as her lips pushed out in a slight pout.  
"Like you could forbid me, you're not my mother."

Sighing, Bastila merely gave Mission an understanding and slightly sympathetic look before moving on as she rubbed her eyes. It'd been hours since they'd left Dantooine, nearly two days since she'd had a good night's sleep and the weariness that had overcome Revan was overcoming her. Moving to the crew quarters of the _Ebon Hawk_ the Padawan nodded to Juhani, who returned the nod as she passed the Padawan, a frown on her feline features.

"Bas- Bastila, might I have a moment of your time?"

Bastila nodded, her eyes heavy with weariness but bright with curiosity as she sat on a bed, waiting for Juhani to speak. Juhani stood, smoothed out the wrinkles in her robes then crossed her arms as she paced back and forth, her brow furrowed in a silent frown.

"I- Revan is a man I feel is responsible for me still being alive. I- I owe him a great deal but I would not be so quick to trust his intentions. I hold him in high regard, I respect him but I do not trust him. I was wrong when I attacked my Master Quatra and to hear she lives- it brings peace to me. Peace I had given up on when I'd thought I had fallen. I- I saw something in Revan's eyes on Dantooine when we fought, saw the darkness he harbors within him and the conflict in his eyes. He goes too far before he realizes yet he controls each of his movements, each of his actions with discipline I can never hope to match. We must be careful, Bastila. I- I do not wish to fight Revan, or the Jedi any longer but he will not leave us the choice if he is still the same man who was the Lord of the Sith. What- what happened to him under the Jedi Order's care would only vindicate his actions, only excuse in his mind what he has done to the Republic and the Order."

Bastila sighed wearily, nodding as she rubbed her face and fought off a yawn. She was so tired and thoughts of Revan were likely to keep her up for hours if she were to dwell on them too closely. No sense worrying though, she'd made her decision, made her own bed so she would just lay in it and see what happened.

"I am young, Juhani but not a fool. I know what I am doing may seem... criminally ignorant but there is something in Revan the Force felt compelled to save, something I felt deserved a chance. I know he cannot be trusted... yet, but it is my hope that one day, hopefully soon he will understand my- our views and perhaps base his actions on less questionable morals..."

Bastila cringed as she thought over what she said, seeing a troubled, partially skeptical look on Juhani's face.

"I think we both know, Bastila, that Revan will do as he wishes."

Bastila could only nod as she lay back in her bed, the dulled sounds of the _Ebon Hawk_ humming along the bulkheads around her as she took in a calming breath, allowing the Jedi Code to pass through her mind in a silent prayer and closed her eyes. Sleep took the Padawan within minutes and Juhani silently left the room, startled to see Revan standing at the doorway, an unreadable expression on his face.

"R- Revan! You- you shouldn't be standing, you're injured!"  
Revan fixed Juhani with an emotionless stare, silently dismissing the Cathar. Juhani averted her eyes from his powerful gaze, stepping past him and moving quickly to the cargo hold of the _Hawk_, where she had set up a small training room. She wouldn't sleep for hours, and even then it would be a light, restless sleep. A Lord of the Sith and a Mandalorian General on board the small ship would mean little rest and she somehow knew Revan had overheard her and Bastila speaking, knew he viewed them as enemies or at the most, a burden he would rid himself of at his earliest convenience. His eyes had said as much when he stared at her.

Revan silently crossed his arms, the pain in his abdomen dulled with drugs but still enough to have him leaning against the doorway. The former Dark Lord silently stared at Bastila as she slept, knowing the moment he closed his own eyes his mental shielding would wane and mix his own thoughts with the Padawan's, filling her sleep with the nightmares of his reality. For some reason, Revan did not want that to happen and he silently stood vigil over Bastila, allowing the peaceful and ignorant dream of the Padawan to fill him with a sense of peace. Her presence was relaxing, soothing despite her sharp tongue and quick wit and Revan found he could admire the Padawan for her courage if not her strength. She was remarkably strong-willed and while she was foolish in trying to save him, he respected her for it. Sighing, Revan turned to leave, a stirring in his abdomen causing the former Dark Lord to stagger slightly as he fought down searing agony mixed with nausea. Juhani was right, he should be asleep but he still remembered what his rest caused Bastila and he owed it to her to keep his own nightmares where they belonged. She had enough to worry about and she'd saved his life enough times that he would not think it weak of her to shy from his thoughts. Even he feared his own darkness at times.

"You going to die on us?"  
Canderous Ordo's voice, an undertone of amusement coloring the normally harsh tone sounded in Revan's ears and he looked up, his face contorted slightly in pain as he offered a weak smirk in reply.

"I don't think the Jedi are that lucky. No, death will pass this one... for a little longer."

Canderous eyed Revan carefully, studying the movement of the former Jedi's muscles as they spasmed in pain and he nodded slightly, having been wounded just as badly before and knowing how it felt.

"I've got some good old fashioned Mandalorian nanites, they'll sew that hole in you right up if you want."  
Revan considered the offer, a stab of pain in his body causing his eyes to roll back into his head as he coughed, fighting off a wave of dizziness. Canderous' offer suddenly sounded a lot better and Revan nodded his approval, following Canderous slowly to the maintenance bay where the Mandalorian had set out what little gear he'd raided from the Mandalorians on Dantooine and what he'd taken with him from Taris.

"What does General Ordo ask of me in return?"  
Revan sat heavily on a cargo crate, a shadow moving in the corner of his vision telling him they had an audience. Knowing it could only be Juhani or Mission, Revan ignored the presence, seeing that Canderous cast a curious glance in the same direction before he knelt and jabbed an injector into Revan's wound, depressing the switch in what could hardly be considered a gentle gesture. Pain was a part of Mandalorian life and Revan only winced with a pained grunt instead of crying out. The burning in his abdomen grew and an undeniably itchy feeling spread over his stomach. Relaxing slightly, Revan channeled the Force into his body, aiding the tiny robots in the healing process as Canderous replaced his equipment, pulling over a cargo crate and sitting across from Revan.

"Answers."  
Canderous answered Revan's earlier question and the deposed Dark Lord's eyes snapped open, flecks of gold mixed with brown causing them to glow in the dim lighting of the maintenance bay. Canderous' steely gray eyes held Revan's gaze and the former Dark Lord nodded, his features blank as he waited for Canderous to elaborate.

"Why did you not simply kill Mandalore the Ultimate and take control of the Clans?"  
Canderous asked, leaning back and crossing his arms calmly as he regarded who should rightfully be the leader of what remained of his people. _Their_ people, Canderous reminded himself. In reply, Revan raised the sleeve of his black tunic, revealing the Mandalorian Mythosaur tattoo telling of his status as a Mandalorian while pulling up the sleeve of his other arm to reveal a slave tattoo to the Bloodraven Clan. Slave was the lowest rank of Mandalorians, reserved for children and those used in the lower ranks of their slave armies. Canderous' brow rose slightly in surprise as he leaned forward, inspecting the red raven superimposed over a black shield. There was no rank marked into Revan's skin and Canderous knew immediately why Revan never claimed to be Mandalore. He couldn't.

"I was taken by the Jedi Master Kreia when I was only ten and I did not undergo the trials of adulthood, so I was not a formal member of the Clans. I never proved myself on my thirteenth birthday and as such, I could not be worthy of being Mandalore."

Canderous' face was set in a grim frown as he lowered his eyes in silent thought.

"You've undergone, accomplished enough to be considered more than a slave by Mandalorian standards... Hell half of us didn't know whether to try to kill you or drop to our knees and worship you when we faced you in battle."

A half-smirk pulled on Revan's features before he pushed it aside and his lips turned down in a frown.

"Four decades ago the Mandalorian Clans under Mandalore the Indomitable swore loyalty to the Dark Jedi Ulic Qel-Droma... I have a proposition for you, Canderous if you are interested."  
Canderous' brow rose slightly, the only tell on his emotionless face that he was curious. Revan closed his eyes, the feeling in his abdomen causing him to grow nauseous for a moment before he regained control and stood, ignoring the pain his healing wounds gave him in protest.

"Swear your loyalty to me, General Ordo and I will gift upon you the mask of Mandalore, so that our people can once again bring our way of life to our enemies."  
By bringing the Mandalorian way of life to their enemies, Revan meant killing them and Canderous chuckled at the joke, standing as he met Revan's eyes, seeing something he couldn't quite name but seeing no duplicity. Kneeling, Canderous lowered his gaze to the floor, offering a Mandalorian salute to Revan.

"Whatever is your will, Lord Revan. The Clans will see it done. This, I swear on the honor of my Clan and the glory of my deeds."  
Revan waited till Canderous looked up at him, meeting his eyes before nodding in approval.

"Then the first order of business, Mandalore Ordo is to have your council."

Canderous looked openly surprised for a moment before he nodded and stood, crossing his arms as he watched Revan casually pace the length of the maintenance bay, testing his limitations with his injury.

"The galaxy does not look upon the Mandalorians with the respect due to them. They see us as barbarians, brutes with little interests in what they view as honor but they are blinded by the values of the Republic and could never understand what destiny the Clans are meant to forge. The Clans will not survive the next millennium, no matter what effort we put into restoring the Clans and that became apparent to me the moment I stepped foot on Malachor V."  
Canderous' face was expressionless, a shifting of his eyes the only tell that he was nervous with the topic of discussion.

"You know what laid there in wait, don't you?"  
Canderous slowly nodded, his eyes flickering as he averted them from Revan.

"The only thing our people feared, a quiet death."  
Revan nodded, the images of what he'd found on Malachor V, deep within the Trayus Academy burned into his very soul to haunt his nightmares for eternity. The True Sith, not those left behind after Exar Kun's war but actual, red-skinned Force-adept Sith had trained there, grew stronger there, murdered, tortured and killed there and Revan could not turn his eyes away from the darkness he saw in the pits of that world, darkness reflected within him since then. The True Sith had the power to take the very life essence from a being, to feed from the Force itself and drain the strength of a Jedi, of a soldier, of anyone before even raising a blade in battle. A single Sith could wipe out entire armies with but a thought and Revan had found the heart of their hidden war efforts against the Republic, the Jedi, all life that wasn't their own and he shuddered at the memory, the comparison of his own evil falling lightyears short of what he'd witnessed on Malachor V.

"You cannot fight the True Sith with armies or ships or soldiers or even Jedi. Intention, the absence of darkness, the flow of the Force in response to its opposite is where they find their strength and those I killed on that world were powerful, strong, but their powers meant nothing where the darkness was stronger than what had existed within me... Their powers are dependant on the flow of the Force, on the dominance of the light. Their very presence draws the flow of the Force to them, lets the Force be with them and they become so powerful... Do you see why I turned on the Republic and the Jedi now, Canderous?"  
Canderous nodded, knowing enough about the True Sith to know the closer you got to their territory, the weaker they seemed to get but if they stepped foot outside of their empire, all bets were off. It was why the Mandalorians never spoke of Malachor V, never tried to draw the attention of the Sith and kept themselves away from the Sith Empire. They could have defeated the True Sith, easily taken their territory but it was the knowledge that a single Sith could drain the life from an entire battle group, an entire world that had kept them wary, fearful even of the Sith. If a single Sith had been able to escape, come to Mandalore, it would have been the end of their people so they'd turned their eyes instead to the Republic. They hadn't taken into consideration the fact that the Republic outnumbered them as badly as they outnumbered the True Sith and in the end, numbers and Revan's tactics had defeated them, given them the same fate challenging the True Sith would have.

"So by spreading darkness to all corners of the Republic, by making them hate you, what you represented, you're leveling the battleground, taking away the advantage the True Sith would have?"  
Revan nodded, a humorless smile on his lips.

"It worked a little too well... The last operative I sent into Sith territory that returned said they were terrified of me, of what I was building with the Star Forge-"  
Canderous rose a brow, his mouth saying the words _Star Forge_ in a silent question.  
"The headpiece of my- Malak's Sith Empire. The Star Forge is a gigantic factory that uses the energy of the Rakatan sun to create... any mechanical device you can imagine, from only energy. It's a legacy from a forgotten era of galactic history and one I put to great use in my war against the Republic, the Jedi and the True Sith. Malak continues my work and while our fates will eventually lead us to confrontation, he is being loyal in his own way to the plan that we- the Council of the Sith Lords and Ladies all agreed to. We plunge the galaxy in darkness not to extinguish the light as the True Sith, but to bend it to our will. If you knew as well as I the darkness on Malachor V, you would know this to be the only way."  
Silently, Canderous nodded, his eyes thoughtful as he pondered the hundreds of questions he had wished to ask Revan. Revan's words, his admission, his reasoning that had just been revealed was enough though to quell the curiosity in Canderous.

"The Jedi order would have thought you insane to propose such a strategy. Save them by destroying them. Funny, but I have seen the True Sith before, Revan and I know you don't mess with that kind of evil unless you're ready to risk your world. Mandalore the Ultimate knew as much and he tried in his own way to do something similar... It was why he picked that moon Dxun for our base of operations during the war, in case the Sith tried to take advantage of the war. We weaken ourselves as much as we weaken them, when it gets down to it, Revan its going to fall not on who has the most ships or men or whatever other toys the Sith and what will be left of the Republic want to throw at each other. Its going to fall to who has the best leadership, the most skill and while you destroyed our people over Malachor V, Revan... you may have also saved us. We'd lost our way during the war and your... methods reminded us of what it meant to be Mandalorian. To overcome superior odds, skill and numbers for our glory and not simply crushing vermin beneath our boots... We understood in the end, Revan."  
Revan's jaw clenched silently as he fought down what could honestly be called remorse over what had happened to the Mandalorian people because of his actions before he pushed it aside, instead reminding himself of why he had done what he had. He gave his people an end to remember and those that would remain would give them a legacy to remember. The weak had been taken in the war as well as the strong, leaving behind scattered groups of Mandalorians fighting for their place in the galaxy. They would spread pain and destruction and darkness but he would use Mandalore's mask, Canderous to rally them to a common cause, rally them to strike the final death blow to the True Sith so the galaxy could be rid of the Sith threat once and for all so that the Mandalorians could be remembered for what they really were. Honorable warriors who's strength alone led them to victory over superior enemies. It was all he could offer his people and the galaxy in return for his own crimes.

Kaera Nurr groaned in pain, absently rubbing the back of her skull where Canderous' precise strike had knocked her unconscious. Seeing the dying embers of the fire beside her, Kaera quickly scrambled to her feet, channeling her pain and nausea into the Force as her hands found her lightsaber and she sighed in relief. It was dawn on Dantooine and she cursed silently as she searched for her communicator. Finding the device, Kaera scanned her surroundings with a critical eye, seeing tracks in the dirt and the dead bodies of two Mandalorians nearby.

"Hello? Yes, this is Knight Nurr. We have a problem."

Kaera quickly relayed her position to the Enclave as well as a private message to the Council before she took quickly to the hills, searching for any evidence of Mandalorians. She knew Revan had been injured, that there were dead Mandalorians present during the last confrontation and she knew she had seen a Mandalorian's armored form behind her before she passed out but she had not known it was Canderous. A steady beeping alerted her to her comm unit as she tracked a single set of prints that led to Juhani's grove and she frowned, answering.

"Yes?"  
A grumble, sounding impatient but slightly relieved responded and she heard Vrook Lamar's gruff voice as he filled her in on the situation. It hadn't been a Mandalorian attack that had led to Bastila and Revan's disappearance, well not the kind of attack she had thought and she looked up, spotting smoking ruins of a Mandalorian encampment that Canderous Ordo had raided the day before. With a sigh, Kaera took off in the direction of the Jedi Enclave, knowing she would need help if she were to track down Revan, Bastila and the rest of their companions from Taris. Aside from Carth anyways. Thinking of Carth brought a pause to Kaera's steps and she wondered if there was something more to the actions of the others besides stupidity in their part of saving Revan. Likely Mission thought she was protecting someone she had foolishly deemed a friend and while it was a terrible decision on the young Twi'lek's part, a larger part of Kaera Nurr respected the young girl for the notion, hoping she wouldn't find Mission's corpse in her search for a renegade Sith Lord.

It took hours for the Council to decide on a course of action and Kaera accompanied an aged Jedi Knight named Nemo to a set of ruins near the grove she had found Revan in while Carth trailed behind them, a look of utter confusion on his face. Apparently Carth couldn't accept what had happened with the others and their only clue to the whereabouts of Revan, Bastila and the others was a cryptic assignment from the Council over a set of ruins Revan and Malak were suspected to have visited on Dantooine after the Mandalorian Wars, during their supposed disappearance.

Knowing the two younger humans required some time to sort out their thoughts, Nemo offered to go on ahead, smiling warmly at Kaera's grateful look as she turned her attention to Carth. Moving ahead, Nemo waved to the two before disappearing into the ancient ruins, his thoughts more on the future then the present. A mechanical noise reached his ears and Nemo spied a droid, ancient but still in operation in the distance. Cautiously approaching the droid, Nemo frowned as it addressed him in a series of alien languages he hardly understood before it spoke an ancient Selkath dialect he picked up on.

"I don't suppose you speak galactic basic?"  
Nemo asked, to which the probe continued to speak to him in ancient Selkath. Sighing, Nemo listened patiently, frowning when the droid spoke of a test to prove his worth. The aged Jedi barely had time to raise his lightsaber before a blasterbolt pierced his side and he collapsed to the ground, pain blocking his concentration as an assault droid, similar to the one that had been speaking to him approached, firing a volley of high powered blasts towards him. To his credit, Nemo managed to overcome his distraction and block several of the shots before he was struck in the center of his chest and fell to the ground, lifeless. The droid spoke to Nemo's corpse, unnecessarily telling the slain Jedi of his failure to complete the trials before the doors that had revealed the battle droid sealed and the only light cast in the room was the pale green glow of the fallen Jedi's lightsaber. It would be an hour before Kaera and Carth would find Nemo, an hour of bickering with one another that led to few answers and contributed in part to a Jedi Knight's death.

It didn't do much to alleviate the guilt gnawing in Carth's gut since he'd shot Revan and he held a hand to his face, nauseated by the sight of Nemo's corpse. The old Jedi had seemed kind, unthreatening and pleasant even and Carth silently mourned the man's death, knowing he and Kaera might have been able to make a difference if they had been there instead of arguing over what Revan was doing to Bastila. A part of Carth knew Revan had some strange sense that what he was doing was right and that there were boundaries he would not cross, he also knew it would take time if Revan wished to turn Bastila and he silently cursed his own foolishness over the matter. That was until he cursed aloud as a battle droid appeared from a side corridor to fire on him and Kaera. Kaera moved from the droid she had been speaking with to ignite her blue lightsaber, deflecting the deadly shots back towards the droid before she heard a mechanical click and the blasterbolts ceased. A hiss of gas and a spark followed a quick warning in the Force and Kaera leapt to her side, avoiding the jet of flame that spurted from the assault droid, scorching Nemo's corpse and nearly taking Carth with it before the soldier leveled his blaster, flicked a switch on the side and fired several ion pulses into the droid, destroying its delicate but reinforced circuitry with the energy pulses. The droid fell to its side and Carth moved cautiously forward, sparing a glance at Kaera as she used the Force to put out the flames on Nemo's corpse and joined him, her lightsaber blazing the same color as her eyes as they scanned the newly opened passage. The droid that greeted them made no offensive move and Carth resisted the urge to blast the thing, instead turning his attention to a console in the adjacent room.

"What do you think that is?"  
Carth asked, approaching the console warily and frowning at the alien text scrolling before him. Checking for his datapad, Carth inserted the device into an open slot on the console that looked like it fit and the datapad translated the text on the alien console, showing Carth and Kaera a simple set of questions that had Carth wondering if it were really that simple. Another room and another console as well as an agitated battle droid led Carth and Kaera back to where Nemo's corpse lay. The droid spoke of the ones who had come before and Carth had a sneaking suspicion it was referring to Revan and Malak and not Nemo before the door behind the droid opened and the soldier and Jedi approached the end of the hallway in silence. A mechanical whirring sounded and an orb rose from three prongs as they opened, reflecting a hologram of the galaxy in faint tones of blue and white.

"This... must be what Revan and Malak found here.. It looks like a map of some kind, but its incomplete..."  
Kaera stated, more to herself than Carth and the soldier nodded absently, using his datapad to record the information before him. If it had been found by Revan and Malak maybe it could answer the question as to why the two had fallen as far as they had, as well as how they were able to amass such a large force of ships and assault droids.

"This information must reach the Council immediately... We'll take Nemo with us, there's no reason to further risk lives with this place."

Carth nodded solemnly and helped Kaera removed Nemo's burned corpse from the ruins before contacting the Jedi to bring a transport as well as a survey team to seal off the ruins so what befell Nemo would not befall anyone else.

In Carth Onasi's opinion the Jedi Order moved slowly, ridiculously slowly for how little their declarations solved. Sending only two people, a young and relatively inexperienced Jedi Knight as well as an experienced but Force-blind Republic Commander after what Revan and Malak had found was lunacy and the soldier said as much to Kaera as they boarded the small transport loaned to them by the Republic. Kaera said nothing, merely eyeing Carth with a look that said the conversation was over while Carth set his belongings, what little he'd brought from the _Ebon Hawk_ before it was stolen, again, aside and took to the controls, entering the coordinates for Tatooine. If they were going to start looking for the Starmaps then he wanted to start some place remote, where they wouldn't draw attention to themselves. A part of him chose Tatooine because of its remoteness, the distance from the Republic and Sith made it a prime spot for Revan to go to ground and Carth pondered what he would do if he ever confronted the man again, his brown eyes narrowing in silent anger. Complicated, the Jedi had called the situation and Carth yearned for the days of a good clean kill, then the enemy was the enemy and not someone you'd seen as a friend, a hero at one point.

Hiding in plain sight was something a Mandalorian rarely understood, but Mira knew the value of stealth and she watched silently and with practiced patience as her target moved from the Corellian freighter that had landed some hours before. Nar Shaddaa was a sort of crossroads between the interior of the Republic and the Outer Rim and brought people from all walks of life. The face had been etched in her mind since she'd first seen the holo with the reward of ten million standard credits. The contract was a Sith contract though and she ignored the twitching in her fingers, just aching to use her wrist gauntlet on the Padawan and collect the reward. She didn't do Sith contracts because she didn't kill her bounties and turning the Jedi over to the Sith would have been idiotic. Especially if the Sith turned her and she came back looking for revenge. Instead, the young bounty hunter followed the Padawan, frowning at the man she was helping across the landing pad and the Mandalorian she saw standing guard at the base of the ship's ramp. There weren't many true Mandalorian out there left but one glance told her the Mandalorian she saw before her was a veteran, the real deal, a General even and she cautiously retreated into the shadows, her stealth generator shimmering as she moved. There wasn't any sense catching up on old times with another Mandalorian, ever. The memories weren't pleasant and she still had the tattoos to remind her she was just a slave to them, not a warrior and she stalked Bastila Shan, wondering why a Jedi would be traveling with a Mandalorian, so far from the Republic. She'd wait until the Jedi and the man she was helping got to wherever they were heading before she'd make her move. Bounty hunting was a competitive business and she knew Bastila Shan's presence on Nar Shaddaa wouldn't go unnoticed for long.


	21. Chapter 20: Phantoms

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"Every time I see this world, I think I die a little inside, Master. There is a... void here that exists nowhere else, an abyss within the Force that- that frightens me if I were to be honest. I see here, the death of the Force and while that might be the better solution, should the True Sith succeed in their plans... how do we know the Force does not keep balance with life. Look at the surface of Malachor V and wonder as I do if it will be this the galaxy has to look forward to... should we fail..."_

_Darth Revan to Darth Traya during his final inspection of the Trayus Academy_

Chapter 20: Phantoms

For Mandalorians, they are taught from the moment they can conceive of the notion that life is hardship, pain and conflict. Their adopted homeworld after their exile from Coruscant was harsh, its surface a desolate and unforgiving desert that was only surpassed in harshness by a handful of other worlds where few dared to live. The strong survive and the weak perish. It was the way of things; the basic teaching Mandalorian children were taught from the moment they could walk, could understand and could fight. While the Mandalorians were harsh in their treatment of their children, this did not begin until they were several years old, normally when they could walk for extended periods of time. Still, pain was a learning experience and the man who had once been Darth Revan sat on a medical bed, his face set in a stony glare as he awaited treatment. Bastila had been allowed to remain in the room with him since his injuries were not immediately life threatening and the healers hovered around the former Dark Lord, fascinated by the Mandalorian technology and Revan's increased healing abilities. A few hours observation and a few kolto treatments were all that were required to free the former Sith Lord of his wound and Revan remained as still as a statue, his brown eyes locked with Bastila Shan's as the Jedi met his gaze unflinchingly.

Thoughts, desires and feelings moved between the two Force-sensitives yet neither spoke a word to the other, words held little value when compared to the simple openness and truth their bond allowed between them. Bastila's features were pale, her cheeks flushed slightly as sweat beaded her forehead and she conversed silently with the fallen Jedi's mind. There was little time left to convince Revan to see things from her perspective and she could feel the overbearing pressure Revan's resolve brought along the bond. Here was a man who had convinced not only himself, but tens of thousands, millions of others that mass murder, torture and slavery were acceptable practices. He'd turned his back on weakness, compassion and kindness in exchange for hatred, contempt and disgust. He'd formed his emotions into a cudgel which he used as a weapon to slay any opposed to his views and it had been successful, too successful.

_"What do you see when you look into the abyss, Padawan?"  
_Revan's voice was light in her mind, almost contrary to the darkness he held within him and she resisted the urge to flinch away from his powerful gaze, instead meeting it head on as she resolved to let her own thoughts be heard to him, let him see what she saw. She knew his opinion was skewed, biased and molded from years of evil and corruption but she could not deny sensing the man he'd been. The man he was supposed to be by all rights.

_"I see a man, misguided by the events around him and conflicted. There is good in you, Revan. I can sense your conflict, I can see your mind. Whatever intangible enemy you fight, I know you think this is the only way but if it is as you've said, that they are the True Sith than they are no more a threat than you or I. They are flesh and blood and as such, susceptible to what we ourselves are vulnerable to."  
_Revan's expression remained guarded, a slight curl to his lips telling of his disagreement with Bastila's thoughts. He had a year to view the True Sith in their natural habitat, see the destructive powers they wielded so easily. In truth, he was not balancing the Force to weaken the Sith, he was strengthening the Republic by culling the weak. The final battle between Jedi and Sith would be fought without advantages, without legions of soldiers and armadas of starships. It would be fought in the minds of each Force-user. Fought in their hearts as they chose to either fight the darkness, or embrace it. Those that fought it would succeed or fail, for better or worse and those that embraced it would serve the Dark Lord of the Sith, would serve him; as they very well should. He had taken pride in the strength he'd found as the Dark Lord, reveled in the powers opened to him and he embraced his destiny as he brought about the inevitable schism within the Jedi Order started thousands of years before, before the exiled Dark Jedi had turned the True Sith from nothing but primitive tribes to an organized empire of warriors and slaves that tore apart the galaxy a thousand years before, and threatened to do so again. His war was not simply a tactic to combat the Sith, but to bring about their end in every way. The legacy of the Sith would be erased, replaced by his Sith Empire and their true corruption, their true evil would die with the last of their kind. Revan was fighting a war of annihilation.

The healers worked quickly and quietly, their work on the former Sith Lord finished in only an hour and Revan sat calmly on a medical bed, a kolto bandage wrapped tightly around his abdomen as he remained as still as possible. They'd change the bandage in a few hours with another and check the healing process but he was certain from how he felt that he would be back to his old self soon enough. Alone for the time being with Bastila, Revan glanced towards the Padawan, a crease to his brow showing his frustration as he listened to the thoughts she did not shield from him. They were so hopeful, so misguided and so utterly wrong that he felt almost offended by the Jedi's hopes for him. He was not one to change sides lightly. First he'd betrayed his people by following Kreia's teachings and later embraced the values of the Jedi Order and the Republic, then he betrayed the Jedi Order by first going to fight his own people and then by using the darkside of the Force.

"The Jedi Order and I have a difference of opinions, to put it lightly, Bastila. I could never return to the Order, _would_ never return to follow teachings I no longer believe. The basis of the Jedi teachings, from my point of view is flawed and were I to claim to have any honor, I could not consider rejoining the Jedi or even the Republic lightly. I will forever be an enemy to them and my honor will not allow me to tolerate their blatant ignorance or yours. I will _never_ be who I was before the Mandalorian wars as I will never again be the young boy my Master Kreia brought to the Order and trained. I have seen- done too much to simply _go back_ and I cannot, even if I wanted to."

Bastila stood from her chair, moving to Revan's bedside and staring down at him imploringly.

"But you _can_ change if you want to. Your past actions say as much. Surely you can see the madness of your designs. Save by destroying? It is-"  
Revan's head turned so he could stare into Bastila's gray eyes, the Padawan stopped speaking abruptly, the memory in Revan's mind and reflecting in her own enough to silence her. The expression on his face and his eyes would have done the same and he spoke in a tone so calm, so emotionless that she found it hard to believe that he was an actual man and not a droid.

"Madness is a state of being. If I am a madman, it is logical to assume I would not know. It was also logical to assume I could not be convinced otherwise of my methods. I do not claim to be a madman, nor do I claim to be perfectly sane, but I will not demean the _sacrifices_ of the Jedi I fought alongside in the Mandalorian wars, I will _not_ demean the sacrifices of those that followed me after Malachor V, for their actions are nothing less than that. A necessary sacrifice."  
Bastila stared down at Revan with a pained expression, not wishing to speak her thoughts but saying them anyways, knowing it futile to hide them from Revan. While they would anger him, hurt him possibly; she knew they were necessary.

"Then, Revan, it is not your soul you damn, but Malak's. He carries on your teachings, carries on your will even if he does not follow you in body, he follows you in mind. He- he is a monument to your sins, Revan. _Malak_ is your sacrifice, as are all those who follow your teachings. They continue to fight your war while you waste away here, weak and diminished and lamenting them for deposing you because of your weakness. You speak of strength and power yet you rely on deceit and stealth to survive. Were you really the man you paint yourself as, you would be Dark Lord. Not- not this weak creature I see before me."  
Her words had the expected results and Revan's eyes glittered dangerously in silent rage as he kept himself still by sheer willpower. Had he not been bonded with the girl and sensed her thoughts, had he not been a Mandalorian and respected honesty he would have killed her for speaking to him in such a manner. He was no child, he realized the magnitude of his sins, of his fall and he realized their effects on Malak. The Padawan have simply given him a verbal slap to the face and he despised her at that moment, though he could not help but respect her for speaking her mind, for looking him in the eyes and telling him what she thought was the truth.

"So you no longer see a man, then?"  
Revan asked finally, his voice controlled as he eyed Bastila with a guarded expression that hinted towards approval. Bastila's face was twisted slightly, as if pained but she spoke honestly and she met his gaze, holding it longer than most would have dared to.

"I see what was once a man, twisted into a monster but retaining enough of his humanity to at least _think_ himself a monster. I can see your shame, Revan. I can see your self-disgust and it is all that remains of a good man. Whether you chose to nurture that monster is what will determine if you _become_ a monster."

Having spoken her mind, Bastila did not wait for Revan to respond as she turned on her heel and left swiftly. She knew it was weak, a retreat but she could not stand being in the same room as him, feeling his overbearing presence. She was glad he kept most of his thoughts shielded as she did the same, walking swiftly down a corridor and stopping as she turned down a hallway and leaned against the wall, her breathing uneven as she fought down her reaction to Revan. Beyond all sense, she wanted, _needed_ him to redeem himself. It was as if redeeming Revan was her own redemption for her actions on Dantooine and on his flagship's bridge. It was the only way she could excuse saving him and she dearly hoped, foolish as the notion was that he would at the very least consider the reality of the galaxy they lived in. He was no longer the Jedi Knight Revan, or the leader of the Revanchist movement or even the Dark Lord of the Sith he so adamantly claimed to be. He was a misguided man who's life had become nothing more than a pawn in the struggle for galactic power between the Jedi, the Republic, the Sith and the Mandalorians. He had been a part of all of those organizations yet he belonged to none. He would forever remain outside of their bounds and she hoped, prayed as irrational as it was, that he would do what was right in the end, not what was necessary. He'd damned himself enough and having seen his mind, she knew him to be someone she might have enjoyed the company of, perhaps even been a friend with if circumstances had been otherwise. Bastila was so caught up in her reaction to Revan and her own thoughts that she did not feel the approach of a young, red-haired bounty hunter, nor the threat the former Mandalorian slave brought with her.

Revan remained still in his bed, staring at the spot Bastila had been in for several moments after her departure before he leaned back, making himself comfortable and ignoring his pestering conscience. He'd been affected by it on Taris early on but he blamed that on the bond as well as remnants of the Tauryn Katarn persona. He was beyond guilt, had no right to feel guilt. It would not be honorable to the sacrifices the dead represented. You do not mourn the dead, you respect them, you avenge them and you use their deaths instead of wasting them. He was using those the Mandalorians and his Sith had killed to pave the way for the defeat of the True Sith. To mourn them would have been a emotional waste of time and he chose instead to view them as a necessary evil, one he would make as meaningful as possible when the time came for the True Sith to invade. They would have a nasty surprise awaiting them when they realized their powers would be next to useless and while it was a high price to pay, it was better than the alternative. Still, a part of Revan, small though it was, considered Bastila's argument and the logic in it. She may have been emotional, but she was still a Jedi and while her decisions of recent spoke to the contrary; her argument was sound and well-informed, though completely wrong. He was beyond any type of redemption and he wouldn't seek it anyways if it were open to him. He had no right. He'd murdered, tortured, enslaved and destroyed and to doubt his actions would simply mean he was a fool. He'd learned all he'd needed when he decided to become Darth Revan and he would live with that, or die by it. It was the type of man he was.

An hour later, Revan was walking under his own strength, clad in his tattered black robes with his lightsaber clearly visible, he moved with a purpose through the streets of Nar Shaddaa. Canderous Ordo was several paces behind him, nursing a blaster wound on his left leg that had slowed him, though his own anger at the situation kept him moving at Revan's fast pace. A group of bounty hunters had ambushed the _Ebon Hawk _and Bastila was nowhere to be found. With the Cathar wary of him and wanting to protect the weakest of their group, Mission, he had decided to go to Revan; leaving the Wookiee and the droid in charge of the ship's safety while Juhani searched for Bastila. The Cathar had given him a distrustful glare before she'd told him to see to Revan while she and Mission searched for Bastila. The Twi'lek had readily agreed, feeling useless in the wake of their escape from Dantooine. A nostalgic part of Mission wanted to explore the city-moon, the streets of the city-covered moon familiar to her. Canderous chose to _guard_ Revan and was delighted when Revan suggested with no small amount of anger that they kill whoever orchestrated the failed attack. Bastila would turn up at some point, Revan had assured him, meaningless though the gesture was, that the Padawan was in no danger and Revan moved through the streets of Nar Shaddaa, securing a speeder easily enough and setting them on a course to a lower level storage facility.

"What do you have down here?"  
Canderous asked curiously, seeing most of the section of the lower level to be abandoned and cut off from the rest of the area. Revan answered quickly enough, a doorway automatically scanning them and opening for Revan. Canderous rose a brow as a forcefield lowered, allowing them access and he listened intently as Revan explained the building.

"I own this entire sector of Nar Shaddaa. The Hutts were more than glad to part with it and I used it primarily as a production and storage facility for certain... necessities that could not be acquired elsewhere."  
Canderous was silent, not that interested in Revan's business unless the other man felt the need to inform him. the tunnel opened into a massive factory and Canderous' brow rose ever so slightly as he spotted a Mandalorian Basilisk War droid, the Scarab-class before he spotted a Clover-class Basilisk as well. A grouping of Sith and Jedi land and spacecraft littered the grounds of the facility as well as dozens of active battle droids. The droids moved about their patrols as if nothing had changed and Canderous realized that the facility was completely automated, lacking any living residents.

"How many of these _stashes_ do you have?"  
Canderous finally asked, his curiosity getting the better of him as he stared longingly at the Mandalorian Basilisks. Revan glanced at his fellow Mandalorian, following Canderous' gaze before he smirked slightly.

"I had one on Telos for a while, as well as a much smaller one on Taris I never managed to get to as it was on the other side of the bloody planet. I'm sure those are gone though. Queen Talia of Onderon also _allowed_ me to have a facility on Dxun as well as a storage facility on the outskirts of Iziz, though I doubt General Vaklu left them untouched after my _death_. Don't worry, though. Mandalore's mask is kept in a safe place."

Canderous had a sneaking suspicion there was someone else around the facility, yet he remained calm as Revan brought their stolen speeder to rest on a landing pad. The former Sith Lord motioned for Canderous to follow him and Canderous did so, resisting the urge to jump as the speeder was instantly incinerated to prevent them from being tracked by an internal security system.

"Quite an impressive place ya got here."  
Canderous muttered, his steel gray eyes narrowing as they took in the distinct shape of a Sith Interdictor ship in the distance. Revan wasn't kidding when he'd said he owned the entire sector and the Mandalorian watched as humanoid forms clad in robes of gray and black moved about the massive landing bay before them. Armored Sith soldiers bearing the mark of the Bloodravens moved amongst the Sith and Canderous frowned as one of the figures wearing the strange robes approached them, its features hidden beneath a cloth mask that looked ridiculously similar to a Tusken Raider's mask, though the coloring was wrong and it was missing the tribal marking. Canderous instantly recognized the robes worn by Sith assassins and tensed, his hand lowering to the Mandalorian Ripper on his hip while he cursed leaving his blaster rifle behind on the _Hawk_ since it would slow him down.

"Lord Revan?"  
The assassin's voice was surprised, but she moved to attention and saluted upon recognizing Revan's features. Revan smirked, offering a simple, half-hearted salute to the Sith assassin before him.

"At ease, Aven. What's the situation?"  
Revan asked, acting as if he hadn't been gone for the better half of a year. The Sith was obviously eyeing Revan but straightened, looking more like a soldier preparing for inspection than an assassin.

"All contact was lost with the _Revenge_ seven and a half months ago. As per your orders, the facility cut contact with the others and we've been working around the clock to produce the droids specified. We've infiltrated all of the other circles of the Empire and the news was grave. We'd been prepared to work our way back into the general population as ordered upon your... death but Lady Traya infiltrated the facility and demanded our allegiance."  
Revan nodded absently, knowing Traya would likely be the one to break through the encryption on his personal computer files. She'd know where he'd hidden the HK droid factories and their shipyards and she would likely use it to her own advantage. Not that he had a problem with it, she was the closest thing he'd had to a mother and even Mandalorians loved their mothers, if they ever got the opportunity to know them. The facility was designed to be fully automated by substandard HK-50 models that would later help combat the Sith once their hold over the Force had weakened enough. Malak had thrown a proverbial hydrospanner into the plans though and it was up to those loyal to him to carry out the plans. He'd ordered the Sith manning the facility to spread out amongst the Republic and prepare the galaxy for war as best they could through alternate means should the Empire or he fall, but obviously Kreia felt she had a better plan.

"Is it possible to contact Lady Traya?"  
Revan asked calmly, noticing several other Sith had begun approaching his position warily. Upon recognizing who he was, they all stood to attention, stopping short of saluting him as they waited for orders. Revan was their leader, he'd carried them through Mandalore's war and he would forever be their leader, even in death. They'd made a commitment, sworn an oath to Revan, knowing the importance of carrying out his plans. These were the Sith most loyal to him, the ones Malak would have killed in his purging of the Sith Order, had he known of them. Malak had managed to kill some of the opposition, but there still remained a good amount of Sith still loyal to their founder, to Revan.

"All contact with the Trayus Academy was lost exactly one month ago, during the blockade of Taris."  
The Sith reported, her hands crossed behind her back as she stood at ease. Revan closed his eyes, feeling along the bond he shared with his once-master, Kreia and felt nothing but a cold void. Knowing what a severed bond felt like, Revan opened his eyes with a frown, knowing Kreia was not dead, but she was cut off from the Force. Obviously the other Lords of Malachor had taken the distraction of Malak's search for Bastila as a means of gaining more power. He was surprised Malak hadn't killed Traya, but the surprise was overruled by a sense of anger towards the situation. He should never have let his guard down around Malak.

"Continue on the assumption that the Lords of Malachor and all their forces are hostile."  
Lieutenant Aven Sek'tai bowed to Revan, turning to make certain arrangements were made to combat the Trayus Academy's Sith before she stopped, remembering a Jedi they held captive in their holding area. She'd infiltrated their base, likely scouting for the Jedi Order and received a nasty surprise when she and a dozen of her fellow Sith assassins appeared around her, using their uniquely trained abilities to nullify her Force-connection and overcome her.

"We had a captured Jedi within the facility, a famous one at that."  
Revan sighed, glancing at Canderous with a shrug as he turned back to Aven.

"I've no time to babysit yet another Jedi. My priority is finding the Bounty Hunters who abducted Bastila Shan. Let the Jedi rot."  
Aven lowered her head, knowing that some of the Jedi still within the Order were friends of Revan's at one point.  
"Milord... Lieutenant Rand was- Well, we've begun evacuation procedures. The base's location was compromised by the Jedi. The charges were set and your arrival is... timely."

Revan's face was devoid of any emotion and Canderous noticed that the figure before him, Aven was a Twi'lek as her headtails wrapped around her neck in a nervous gesture she hadn't been able to hide when faced with Revan. She had been a slave on a Hutt colony when Revan had come during the Mandalorians wars and saved her and she would forever be indebted to him for that. She would also forever fear him because of what he represented. Her freedom.

"Atton was never fond of Jedi..."  
Revan stated carefully, his eyes narrowing as a frown marked his features. Obviously the Jedi was one of importance if Aven was so nervous in his presence and he wondered briefly if it had been Atris. He hated Atris for staying with the Jedi Order instead of joining him and Malak to fight the Mandalorians, but she had been a close friend years before and he owed much of his knowledge of the Jedi archives to the librarian. She had been a student of his own Master and he had a competitive and mutually respectful relationship with the woman. At least until she'd helped the Jedi try to mind wipe him. If Atton had dismembered her, he wouldn't exactly be crushed, but he wouldn't be happy either.

"The Jedi did not survive the... Lieutenant Rand was... continually agitated after your loss. He- he took it out on the Jedi he captured."

Revan's eyes gleamed slightly, a slight wince, imperceptible, crossed his features as he thought of what Atton was capable of as a torturer. The man had enough anger and resentment in him to give a True Sith cause for envy and Revan crossed his arms calmly, raising a brow as he stared at Aven.

"Continue with the evacuation, the facility is to be destroyed but I want all those who are willing to continue following me to take the _Revenge II_ to Roon in two month's time. There is enough open space out there for you all to hide until called upon and Roon is as good a place to start as any."  
Aven nodded, moving away from Revan cautiously as she went to carry out Revan's orders. He'd offered them all freedom from his ways but she knew only Atton had begun to doubt Revan's teachings. The dead Jedi in the prison cell two levels down had met Atton's torture with calm and insightful words, trying to turn the man from his ways and somehow, she'd gotten to Atton before she'd died. Aven closed her eyes, sighing slightly as she came to a decision. Revan was alive and she owed it to him to remain loyal. She was certain most of the others would agree and she moved with haste to the _Revenge II_, passing along the option to all of the _Revanchist Sith_, as they'd begun calling themselves, she met on the way.

"I got a feeling whatever this Atton character did to that Jedi wasn't pretty."  
Revan nodded absently to Canderous, knowing logically that it hadn't been Bastila but some part of him irrationally concerned. He had to see the Jedi's corpse with his own eyes before the, he wouldn't really call it worry, unease would have been a better description, would leave him. Moving to a nearby lift, Revan and Canderous waited calmly as the elevator carried them down two levels to an automated prison area. Revan entered the room, the scent of human blood strong in the air long with perspiration and other, less-than flattering aromas. He'd seen his prisoners soil themselves in his presence as he tortured them and it was not a new smell to him, just a combination of odors he associated with both misery and death. The first thing Revan noticed as he stared at the dead Jedi before him was her hair. Fiery in color against the pale gray of the walls as she remained where she'd died, strapped to a slab and drained of her life. Revan's hands clenched into fists as he realized why Aven had been hesitant to tell him who the Jedi was and he let out a very un-Mandalorian sigh as he moved to a storage bin, took a white sheet from it and carefully covered the Jedi's naked and mutilated form. Her body would be incinerated when the base was destroyed but there was something to be said of dignity in death. Her face was serene, almost at peace and Revan ignored the dead eyes that stared at him, forever reflecting sympathy as he turned from Vima Sunrider's corpse.

"Mandalore's mask if on sublevel 3, section 32. The passcode for access is IE-244-79. Why don't you go retrieve it, Canderous. Its yours now."  
Canderous turned his gaze from the covered Jedi's corpse to Revan, his features strangely subdued as he nodded. He'd been right about what Atton did to the Jedi not being pretty and he left Revan alone in the room, retrieving Mandalore's mask mere minutes later. Canderous stared down at the mask of his people's leader, feeling strangely unfulfilled as he claimed it as his own. Not because he hadn't fought the previous owner to the death, but simply because the image of the tortured Jedi's body had reminded him of how low his people had sunk during the wars. He'd reclaim their honor as Mandalore, leave behind something other than corpses as a testament to Mandalorian glory.

"How long have you been watching me?"  
Revan asked the empty room, the covered body of Vima Sunrider motionless as a semi-transparent form appeared at his side, staring thoughtfully at the white sheet before it turned to Revan. A soft blue light emanated from the apparition as it eyed Revan warily, its expression troubled.

"Since I became one with the Force and didn't find you on the other side."  
Vima Sunrider's spirit walked over towards the site of her death, a curious look crossing her face before she turned to Revan, frowning at him in what could be considered a concerned fashion.

"Jedi spirits do not commune with Sith Lords, Revan. Not unless there is no other choice. I've... seen what you are trying to do and while it is... monstrous, it is working. The True Sith have begun to notice and prepare, but you've lost control of the situation, Revan. Malak has lost control. He must be stopped."  
Revan's jaw clenched in silent anger as he stared at Vima's covered corpse, refusing to look at her ghost. He'd met a few Force-spirits in his time, just never one of a friend and he couldn't look at her, couldn't look away from her corpse.

"What was done to you by my mother, by the Council, was wrong. But so is what was done here, to me. You need to let go of the hatred, Revan, the resentment or this is the future that awaits all of the Jedi you don't turn. Do you want this to happen to Atris? To Kavar or Dorak or Zhar?"  
Revan's face took on a hint of amusement though he didn't turn to Vima's spirit.

"Maybe Vrook."  
Vima's ghost surprised Revan by laughing. The sound was so familiar, yet so alien at the same time that Revan glanced at her, a confused expression on his face. Vima smiled sadly at Revan, shaking her head as her amusement left her slowly.

"I admit at times I had entertained thoughts of... subjecting Vrook Lamar to torture, but he means well in his actions and you left the Jedi Council little choice on their treatment of you."

Revan sighed, moving towards Vima's covered form and undoing the restraints, gently laying the body to the floor and staring down at her for a moment in thoughtful silence. He'd doubted himself on Taris and even a little on Dantooine and when Bastila had thrown her own opinions in his face. Seeing his friend's ravaged body had torn at his confidence and feeling her lingering presence in the Force told him of how recently she'd died, and how violently.

"Don't start talking about destiny, Vima. My only concern is balancing the Force with as little damage as possible. I've done what no one else would and while the True Sith still have the advantage, I need Malak insane. I need Malak to continue spreading darkness or my plan will never work."  
Vima's phantom features were schooled in a look of annoyance.

"I died here, Revan. You may have stopped caring a long time ago about your brothers and sisters in the Force but this is serious. Remember Kreia's teachings, Revan. How your actions effect not only those you touch, but those they touch as well. The Force _is_ balanced. You're merely letting Alec run loose so you don't have to be the one to kill him."  
Revan flinched slightly at the use of Malak's real name. The name he'd known the tall human by before they'd joined the Mandalorian wars and he'd adopted the name the Mandalorians had begun calling him.

"Oh, I see. You still think you can save him, don't you? You damned Squints when you maimed him, when you chose to become a Sith instead of help Kenobi. He never forgave you for that and his hatred has only grown. He will do to the galaxy what you have done to him. Your sins you commit will come back to visit you, Revan. They already have. You see him as a victim and while you have anger, you turn it inwards instead of focusing it on him. He will destroy everything, Revan. You know this, because you can feel it. You know you've made a madman out of him."

Revan again flinched at Malak's nickname, not having heard Malak called by his previous names since the outbreak of the Mandalorian wars and he unconsciously tightened his crossed arms, his face troubled as he looked between Vima's corpse and her apparition. What remained of the friendship bond he once shared with Malak was ravaged, chaotic and torn. Madness. Malak was insane, a dangerous thing even if he hadn't had a rational mind behind it. Malak's twisted mind saw what he was doing as the only way, because of _his_ actions and Revan felt the same guilt he'd felt on Taris, when Carth had told him of his destroyed family. There were only a handful of people in the galaxy that he truly felt anything powerful around and one lay dead at his feet. As if to finalize her argument, Vima Sunrider moved in front of Revan, raising her hands gently to his face and while they were intangible, something within their auras connected, causing Revan to flinch as he looked up into her eyes, their spectral blue depths still reflecting the same pity her dead body's eyes had.

"What Atton did to me, Malak will to do _her_, if he is not stopped."  
Revan felt something dark within himself. Something that was different from the darkness he harbored and he stared blankly into Vima's eyes, not quite knowing how to describe the feeling within him. It was dark, violent and primal, but righteous in a way and calling for revenge against something that hadn't happened yet. Something that would happen if he didn't stop it. For the first time in half a decade, Revan doubted his own sense and felt an abhorrent rage at what had happened in that prison cell, at everything and he blinked, the emotion gone before it had a chance to effect him physically. His heart was beating faster than it should, pounding in his ears and he blinked at the empty room around him, wondering briefly if he'd gone mad and imagined his dead friend's ghost before he glanced down at his feet, his eyes troubled as another emotion gripped him. Concern. He was concerned that what Vima had said to him was true and he took in a shaky breath, glancing around the room silently before tilting his head to the covered body in the room in silent respect. Vima Sunrider deserved a better death, she'd been a skilled warrior and- and a good friend. He'd make certain Atton Rand suffered the next time they crossed paths. There was no doubt in Revan's mind at that moment that his plans for the galaxy were at an end. Whatever he'd set out to do as Darth Revan was done and any further destruction was detrimental to the cause, to the coming war and it had to be stopped, at all costs. There was also a certain Jedi Padawan to find and Revan had little doubt who the _her_ Vima had referred to was. Bastila Shan was connected to him mentally and Malak would use that, by any means he could attain; Malak would use that if he ever found out about it.

"You ain't going soft on me, are you?"  
Canderous Ordo's voice was gruff, but probably about as soft as it would ever get and Revan resisted the urge to start, calmly turning to the Mandalorian as he considered his response. Canderous' hand held Mandalore's mask and Revan wondered briefly why the Ordo General had not donned it immediately before he met the older Mandalorian's eyes and blinked.

"I was just remembering why I started my war. I think... my priorities are about to change."  
Canderous considered this, shrugging indifferently as he glanced down at the covered corpse of Nomi Sunrider's daughter. He'd recognized the Jedi as the daughter of the Jedi that had taken Ulic Qel-Droma's powers and led to the defeat of Exar Kun and he felt she deserved a better death. A clean death. There was little honor to be had in a death such as hers, but by the expression that had been on her face, Canderous knew the Jedi had met an honorable end, facing it without fear. He could respect that, though he could not excuse what had been done to her. Prolonging pain was not a warrior's purpose and torture, while practiced by the Mandalorians, was not meant as a means of gaining honor. Torture was a means of getting results.

"So long as I get to kill some worthy adversaries, I'm with you."  
Revan glanced at Canderous thoughtfully before nodding as he turned and left Vima's body in peace, locking the doorway behind him as they moved to collect some of his personal effects. He had some armor and robes somewhere in the base and he knew Aven wasn't foolish enough to destroy the place with him still in it. She was loyal and one of the few trustworthy Sith out there. It was why she was in this facility to begin with.

"We'll find Bastila and the others and return to the _Ebon Hawk_. I've no interest gallivanting around the galaxy in an Interdictor right now and there are some... loose ends to tie up before I begin the next stage of my plans."

Canderous rose a brow in interest, though he did not comment as they stepped into the lift and Revan entered a coded sequence, gaining access to his own personal section of the facility. Canderous noted absently it was the area he'd just returned from and he had a fairly good idea of what Revan was going to retrieve, though it probably wasn't the best idea. Canderous couldn't help but smirk at the thought of Darth Revan walking through the streets of Nar Shaddaa in his battle robes and mask. It would certainly make things interesting.

Carth Onasi closed his eyes, letting out a long, drawn-out sigh as he relished the feel of the Jedi shuttle's controlled environment. Sweat stained the Republic soldier's tan shirt and his heavy jacket laid on the console in front of him as he stared out of the viewport of the small ship. They'd been on Tatooine for a day and so far had found nothing. The airspace in the surrounding desert was strictly restricted to Czerka craft and it was taking some time securing permission from the local Czerka Corporation representative. Jedi or not, diplomacy was not Kaera Nurr's strong point and she joined Carth in the cockpit of the transport, her blue eyes weary as she followed Carth's gaze.

"I doubt we'll find what Revan and Malak did without some kind of clue. Whenever I ask about the Sith, all I get is nonsense and fairytales. Revan and Malak were likely covert in their last visit here and its doubtful the Sith have been back in any sense of the word. This world is worthless, its likely the Sith left it for a place to dump their trash once their war is over."

Carth snorted at that, his amusement not enough to warrant a laugh, but enough to make some acknowledgment. Crossing his arms with a sigh, the Republic Commander stared off at the lowering twin suns of Tatooine. The Republic and Jedi Order had no jurisdiction out on the rim and as the world was claimed by Czerka Corp, Czerka having the last say on who left Anchorhead. Deciding it was best to sleep on the matter, Carth slowly closed his eyes, drifting off to sleep easily enough. The stress of the past few days had worn on him and staying up all night worrying hadn't done him any good. Kaera glanced sidelong at Carth as he dozed on in the pilot's seat. Eyes thoughtful, the Jedi turned back to the communications relay in front of her and sent a quick update of their situation to the Dantooine Council. They'd be wasting yet another day waiting for clearance from Czerka Corp's off world offices. Likely the Republic or the Jedi were going through the proper channels and Kaera wondered vaguely what Revan would have done in the same position.

"He'd have likely killed the guard and anyone else who tried to stop him on his way out."  
Grimacing at the thought as well as to the implications of what a free Darth Revan could bring upon the galaxy, Kaera checked the transport's logs, hoping for an update from the Council on Revan's whereabouts. She had a bad feeling suddenly and wondered briefly how Bastila and the others that had gone with Revan were being treated.

Revan moved through the buildings of Nar Shaddaa quickly, his body covered in a fresh set of jet-black robes similar to a Jedi Knight's. Blood-red Mandalorian gauntlets covered Revan's forearms and clean, black leather gloves held tightly to the lightsaber of its owner. Revan relished the feel of his own lightsaber, a second weapon of his creation dangling from his belt as his black cloak billowed behind him. The skyline behind was smoldering from his hidden base's self-destruction and above a Mandalorian swoop bike carried Canderous' armored form. Swoop bikes were a lot faster than walking and Revan was more than happy to part with a few of the devices. Aven and the other Sith loyal to him had departed shortly before the base's destruction and the deposed Sith Lord tapped the controls of his swoop bike, the mask he wore bringing up a display of the surrounding area and its proximity to the medical facility he'd been treated in earlier that evening. Few noticed the pair and Revan's distinct mask went unnoticed as he moved past the walkways of Nar Shaddaa with near-blinding speed. Once they landed he would draw up his hood and it would take someone a good amount of time staring at him to figure out the mask he wore wasn't any ordinary mask.

"You sure you know where you're going?"  
Canderous asked, bored with the idea of flying around all night. Revan acknowledged him with a simple nod that Canderous would have missed if he hadn't been glancing in the former Jedi's direction and Canderous grunted, curious as to the light armor Revan was wearing. It looked like a bastardized version of Mandalorian and Republic armor, but its distinct crimson color reminded him all too clearly of Revan's old battle robes and armor. It wasn't the same, but the look was close enough that anyone with two brain cells to rub together and a clue would make the connection. Still, most of the sentients in the galaxy were pretty dense and Canderous knew a few mercenaries and bounty hunters that had taken to dressing like Revan and Malak. They couldn't make their own reputations so they had to leech off of their better's. Disgusted at the thought, Canderous decided he would go along with Revan's senses. The younger Mandalorian had been vague about where to find Bastila, but he'd said something about a connection between Bastila and himself and Canderous had smirked at Revan's choice of words, ignoring the blank look the younger man had sent him when he had questioned what Revan was implying. They had work to do and while humor was good for clearing away stress, battle was upon them. They had a Jedi Princess to find and it was time to get serious.


	22. Chapter 21: Fate

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"Power is the ability to hold a life in your hands; to shape it, nurture it and mold it into what you would have it be... and then taking it away. There comes a point when one is in the throes of agony where death becomes preferable to life. Rest assured, I can educate you on that subject, should you chose to use your... unique abilities against me. Always remember it is I, not you or Sion or Traya or even Malak who holds the power."_

_Darth Revan to Darth Nihilus shortly before the Sith Raid on Foerost_

Chapter 21: Fate

Mira cursed as she secured her burden on her speeder, narrowly avoiding a deadly blaster bolt as it sizzled past her, the air burning with the scent of ozone as the blaster bolt struck the side of the speeder, leaving a black scorch mark which was quickly joined by two more. Raising her left arm, Mira brought her right over her gauntlet, firing a sedative dart in the direction of her assailant and the Quarren bounty hunter dropped to the ground, unconscious immediately from the dart. Clenching her hand in a fist as she sneered in annoyance at the interruption, Mira climbed onto her speeder, ignoring the groan from her mark as she started the repulsors and sped away. She was correct in her assumption that the Jedi simply wouldn't come along quietly and she'd been forced to subdue the Padawan before she came under attack from fellow bounty hunters that were looking to get rich fast. Cursing as she dodged her speeder between a grouping of walkways that passed between the towers of Nar Shaddaa, the former Mandalorian slave bit back a cry of pain as a blaster bolt seared her left shoulder, the speeder banking sharply before she regained control and ignored the pain from her wound. Pulling back on the manual controls, Mira rose the nose of the speeder, spinning the craft so the sniper from the walkway shooting at her could not get a clear shot before she punched the boosters, blood slowly leaking down her left arm as she struggled to make as clean of an escape as she could. Once she got over the refugee sector, she could ditch the craft and make her way to her hideout where she could get the Padawan taken care of. There was likely a nice bounty on her head for having Bastila Shan and Mira scowled at the thought, glancing at her speeder's passenger in annoyance. She couldn't very well turn herself in.

"You better be worth all this trouble, _Jetii." _(Mando'a, the Mandalorian word for Jedi)

Revan and Canderous moved quickly from their swoop bikes, the agile craft hovering on their repulsors on the landing pad the _Ebon Hawk_ sat upon. Moving with a purpose, Revan did not break stride as he waved his hand, bypassing the _Hawk's_ security measures and lowering the ramp. Sweeping past a confused Zalbaar, Revan stopped short of the communications relay in the heart of the _Hawk_, his fingers moving quickly over the console as they called up a communications line with the local bounty hunter office. Canderous moved past Revan and into the cargo bay, securing his heavy repeating blaster and returning as Revan called up a holo-image of Bastila Shan as well as one of Kaera, Carth and the rest of the _Ebon Hawk's _unofficial crew. Staring blankly at the Sith bounty contracts, Revan's hand twitched in annoyance as he glanced over at Canderous, the Mandalorian making some adjustments to Mandalore's mask before covering his rugged features beneath the ancient helm.

"I'm going to scout out the Refugee Sector, I can sense Bastila in that area. Keep the ship's engines warmed up and stay in contact if you find anything."  
Canderous nodded absently, moving to the console even as Revan hastily exited the ship. Zalbaar made a move as if to follow Revan before stopping and glancing towards Canderous as the older of the Mandalorians cautiously entered several sequences into the communications console. An image of a local bounty contract rose of a young, red-haired woman with _Mira_ tagged beside her name as well as a healthy sum of credits. Frowning at the amount and the lack of any real information, Canderous tapped on the console, rewarded with a grumbled greeting from Revan as the former Sith Lord mounted his swoop bike.

"Got something that might be a lead on the Princess. Red-haired bounty hunter named Mira. She's got a pretty hefty number on her head with no explanation and it's a local contract. Bet she's the one that has the Jedi."

Revan considered Canderous' train of thought as the information played over his swoop's console. Frowning behind the mask that covered his features, the deposed Sith Lord said this thanks to Canderous before cutting the communication and moving away at the swoop bike's top speed. He and Canderous had been searching and coordinating with Juhani for nearly an hour and they had nothing. That mixed with the rising sense of unease the lack of progress brought on gave Revan the brilliant idea of monitoring the local hunters. Canderous was better connected and Revan knew he could move faster on his own, so there was little up for debate as he banked his swoop and dropped between a walkway and a spire, slowing to avoid a direct collision with a passing skiff as it moved what was likely garbage to a reclamation center. Spotting two familiar forms on a distant walkway through his mask's sensors, Revan slowed his swoop and approached the two quietly, not wanting to draw attention to himself though he knew his armor would do at least that if not more.

"C'mon! This is boring! I thought you Jedi could like sense each other."

Juhani paused to glance behind her impassively. Mission had quickly gotten bored with searching for Bastila and was filling that boredom with an excessive amount of conversation. The lights of the buildings around her vaguely resembled Coruscant or what Taris had once been and Juhani closed her eyes, taking in a calming breath. The air was hardly refreshing and the Cathar resisted the urge to gag as she opened her eyes and regarded Mission calmly.

"That is not how it works. We can sense when another Jedi is near but it is hardly a scanner."  
Mission frowned at that, tilting her head to the side as she regarded Juhani with a confused expression.

"But can't you like sense when you're... you know, more near?"

Had she remained a slave to the darkside, Juhani might have been tempted to slice Mission's head from her shoulders, but the Cathar only bristled slightly, taking in another calming breath and repeating the Jedi Code through her mind. Juhani prepared a calm and composed rebuttal to Mission's question when she felt a slight disturbance in the Force. Feeling the familiar sense of her stomach dropping, Juhani looked around cautiously for the Force-Adept she sensed, spotting a swoop bike hovering beside the walkway she and Mission were on.

"Any progress?"  
A clipped Concord Dawn accented voice said from behind her. Juhani tensed, looking behind her to see Mission regarding Revan warily as the deposed Sith Lord kept his gaze focused on Juhani. The Cathar collected herself, not trusting her voice and taking the opportunity to straighten her robes. Revan rose a brow beneath his mask but remained still aside from crossing his arms impatiently.

"Are you... trying to draw attention to us?"  
Juhani asked incredulously when she found her voice. The robes Revan was wearing were black, covering him much as his battle robes as Darth Revan had, though the armor he wore looked older, more worn that the shining crimson he wore as the Lord of the Sith. Juhani realized belatedly that she was looking at the armor Revan had worn as a Republic General, a combination of Mandalorian, Republic and Echani armor with a unique design that he'd later expanded upon for combating Force-sensitives. The armor he wore was heavier, made from Mandalorian metal rather than cortosis and its design was more generic, though the faded blood red remained, marked by scorches and scratches that Juhani knew were from battles long past. Obviously the robes and armor held some sentimental value to Revan and as she met the former Sith Lord's eyes, Juhani couldn't help but frown disapprovingly as she looked into the face of an all-too familiar mask.

"You know... yea, I think maybe you need to tone it down a bit, Rev."  
Revan glanced sidelong at Mission, his head tilted slightly as he regarded the Twi'lek teen with amusement. He enjoyed a bit of danger, in advertising who he was. It made life interesting. Painful, maybe, but interesting. Not like pain wasn't anything more than a learning experience and something to overcome.

"I suppose it is a little fun blending in but armor adds a bit of defense cloth doesn't offer and... I plan to be killing... lots of people... lots of people..."  
Revan's masked features took on an absent look as he stared off into the distance, frowning thoughtfully as his eyes tracked a red-haired young woman near an access corridor near the passageway between the Refugee sector and the Red sector. There was a disturbance in the Force, localized towards him and Revan's frown deepened as he and Juhani moved in the same instant, Revan's right hand raising as his lightsaber moved from his belt to its waiting grasp while his left moved to grab Mission by the shoulders and drag her with him as he passed. Immediately, blasterbolts began raining down on the three and Juhani's blue blade snapped to life with Revan's red, joining the deposed Dark Lord's in deflecting the deadly energy blasts away from themselves. Mission had enough time to see Calo Nord's tell-tale armored form appearing from a higher walkway before she felt herself collide with a cargo container that acted as a makeshift wall beside the corridor leading to the Refugee sector. Mission saw a flash of white and blinked away the pain of her head knocking against the twelve meter high container while a flashing blur of red at her side absently drew her attention to Revan as he forced her down beside him. Revan staggered slightly as a blasterbolt struck his chest and he let out a growl of frustration as he turned slightly, providing Mission with enough cover for her to reach for her pistol.

Revan glowered in silent rage towards the direction of Calo Nord as the bounty hunter and what looked like a dozen other hunters opened up on him. He could easily cross the distance but then he would be leaving Mission with the limited cover a wall provided. Sneering slightly, Revan caught movement out of the corner of his eyes, his mask's sensors showing Juhani's form ducking between shots and spinning her saber in an impressive Soresu style that made Revan deflect a few extra blasterbolts that Juhani's defensive form sent his and Mission's way. Familiarizing himself with the Cathar's style, Revan eased away from the side of the container, moving his left hand from Mission's shoulder and dropping it to a second saber on his belt. His second blade snapping to life, Revan moved the azure blade in a simple arc as he stepped away from the container, using both sabers to weave a shield of blue and red as he advanced, making sure to keep Mission covered as the Twi'lek pulled her weapon free and stared at the two Jedi in mute shock before coming to her senses and raising her pistol, firing off a shot towards a bounty hunter and causing the alien to duck out of the way, taking some of the pressure off of Revan and Juhani.

"Nothing personal, but you got away. No one gets away from me."  
Revan heard Calo shouting over the report of blasterbolts and released his grip on his blue-bladed saber, the Force swelling around him and continuing to move the saber as if it were still in his hand. Reaching out, Revan grabbed the spherical explosive thrown by Calo and smirked as he tossed it back, the fuse burning out and detonating the explosive as it landed between the cover the hunters had taken. A momentary silence filled the battlefield as the grenade detonated and the hunters ceased fire to scrambled for better cover. Still, four were killed instantly from the explosive and two more were wounded, one of the wounded knocked unconscious while the other writhed in agony on the ground. Mission, having been behind Revan at the time was shielded from the explosion and Juhani let out a curse, using the Force to leap from the walkway, landing on Revan's still hovering swoop bike while the former Dark Lord of the Sith stood his ground, shrapnel scalding his cloak and bouncing off of his armor harmlessly while he used the Force to bring his hovering saber back to his hand, calmly deactivating the weapon and placing it on his belt casually as he walked forward, his pace a half-jog as he spun, twisting and driving his saber down into the walkway, the upward slash bringing with it a stream of sparks and molten duracrete as he decapitated the unconscious and wounded hunter at his feet while Mission moved back, using the corridor leading away from the Refugee sector as shelter as the remaining eight hunters opened fire again.

"I take all my battles personally, Calo."

Revan stated to the bounty hunter as the shorter human scrambled to his feet. Moving through the group of hunters before their weapons could track him, Revan brought his blade across the chest of one, then another and finally through the helmet of a third as the hunter abandoned its blaster, attempting to skewer the deposed Sith with a vibrosword. Revan's crimson blade didn't quite penetrate the third hunter's skull and scorched the human hunter along his eyes. Screaming in agony, the hunter staggered around blindly, his blade on the ground at his feet as he writhed blindly. Revan found no humor or pleasure in the display, merely using it as a diversion as Calo shot his fellow bounty hunter to get a clear shot at Revan. Revan took the opportunity to deflect the shots into the two hunters flanking Calo and the short bounty hunter cursed to himself, ducking to avoid returning shots. He'd killed Jedi before, even a Sith or two that crossed him but never on an open or even battleground. Here, Revan was the stronger opponent, though he was outnumbered the odds were quickly falling in the former Sith Lord's favor and Revan continued his advance, stopping when Juhani entered the fray and disabled Calo's last ally, leaving the short hunter alone against two fully trained Force adepts and a Twi'lek street urchin.

"That was refreshing."

Revan muttered with a sneer, patting his left hand on a smoldering hole in his cloak. Calo looked between Revan, Juhani and Mission before moving his hand with startling speed for a Force-blind and tossing out a flash grenade. Juhani, not expecting the move as the Force did not warn her of the danger that was directed away from her was blinded by the blast and hissed as she covered her eyes, trying to clear her vision as Revan's mask's sensors shorted out temporarily, overloading at the bright flash and shutting down. Cursing as Calo began moving, Revan resisted the urge to let the Force take over his actions, not trusting the Force completely as it had a way of not being _with_ him at inopportune times.

"No way, bub."  
Mission's voice reached Revan's ears as he took off his mask, blinking against the lingering haze in his vision as he spotted Calo rushing the Twi'lek. Mission raised her pistol, firing point-blank at the charging hunter and hitting him in the chest. Calo smirked, raising his pistols, one pointed at Mission and the other at Revan as he charged the hunter from the side. The result was rather one sided as Revan, weary of all pretenses merely raised his hand, striking Calo with a powerful Force-push that struck the hunter with bone-crushing force and sent him to the ground, skidding before he stopped just at the edge of the walkway. Revan spun his saner absently in his hand, walking to Calo's still form before driving the blade downward into the bounty hunter, ending the impressive career of the galaxy's most famed bounty hunter with a simple flick of the wrist. Thumbing the switch to his saber, Revan glanced around, spotting the unconscious bounty hunter and Juhani's disabled opponent still at the Cathar's feet.

"You alright, Mission?"

The Twi'lek nodded shakily, her eyes wide as she stared at Calo's twisted body. She didn't know if the saber to the chest was necessary as it had looked like whatever invisible force that had struck the hunter had killed him, but Mission wasn't complaining. She was still breathing after all. Revan pushed his mask up as it dropped slightly, clearing his throat as he reached his right hand to the left side of his neck, his eyes twitching slightly as he pulled out a jagged shard of shrapnel, flicking away the chunk of durasteel and reaching down his collar to pull out a smaller shard, sneering in disgust as he straightened his collar.

"Er- thanks for... taking the blast..."  
Mission said uncertainly, realizing she'd have been dead if Revan had not taken the explosion head-on. Revan's eyes flickered to the Twi'lek's face, a half-grin on his face before he lowered his mask, adjusting the straps and tapping his fingers on its side as its sensors reset. His face covered once more, Revan turned towards Juhani, striding to the Cathar and killing the two wounded hunters between them without breaking stride. Mission had safeguarded his well-being on Taris when he was infected with the Rakgoul disease and again when she flew the _Ebon Hawk_ to Juhani's grove, he was merely repaying a debt, though he found the presence of the young Twi'lek less annoyance in recent days.

"Juhani, take Mission and that swoop bike and head back to the _Hawk_. I can't afford to be distracted right now."  
Juhani looked between Mission's stunned face and then to Revan's featureless mask before sighing and nodding as she tried to come to terms with how she felt over Revan's emotionless execution of the disabled opponents. Not having much of an argument that would break through Revan's apathy, Juhani merely accepted the events as necessary. The hunters had attacked them after all and would likely have had no qualms with killing them when they were unconscious or wounded. Smelling Revan's blood in the air, Juhani debated following the deposed Sith Lord before she caught sight of Mission moving between the bodies of the hunters that had attacked them, a slightly shaken look on her young features. Knowing the Twi'lek would need the company more and that even wounded, Revan was formidable, Juhani followed the deposed Sith's advice, calling Mission over to the swoop bike while Revan hastily followed the path he'd spotted Mira heading through.

Mira knew she was in trouble. Bastila was safely stowed away, sleeping off the tranquilizer dart she'd used to make the Jedi more cooperative. It still didn't make her current predicament any easier. Word had been leaked that she had Bastila Shan in her possession and the other hunters were gunning for her. She'd been okay with that until she spotted Calo Nord. Calo was famous even in Hutt space and Mira knew she would be in trouble, likely outclassed if she went head to head with the short human hunter. She'd been about to return to her hideout with her new supplies when she spotted Calo and a group of around a dozen other hunters milling about the walkway between Red sector and the Refugee sector and she cursed, using her stealth field generator to hide from their prying eyes as she quietly tried to make her way past them. That was until she saw them ambush another group of people. Taking advantage of the distraction, Mira turned her eyes briefly to gaze at the poor souls being attacked by Calo and his allies before she paled and froze, gazing into a mask she hadn't seen in person for half a decade. The lightsaber in the figure's hand, as well as the presence of a Cathar Jedi wielding an azure saber made her doubt her own eyes before she watched how he moved, so like the man who'd killed Mandalore the Ultimate. Mira watched, transfixed as the figured covered what looked like a young Twi'lek before she saw the devastation he unleashed upon Calo and his hired thugs. Turning, Mira cursed herself and ran as quickly as she could, not paying attention to the shadowed form of a Wookiee that moved adjacent to her, stalking her patiently. Hanharr would make certain to pay the red-haired one back for his debt of life. He would take her life for saving his years before and then he would take the reward for her head as well. Stalking the former Mandalorian slave, the crazed Wookiee mused over his skewed thoughts, not noticing that he himself was being stalked.

Anger would have been too strong a word for what Bastila Shan was feeling as she slowly shook off the effects of the tranquilizer dart that was still imbedded in her shoulder. Huffing silently in annoyance, the Padawan closed her eyes, concentrating on the Force to unlock the binders on her wrists, the mechanism clicking quietly as the restraints dropped to the ground. Absently rubbing her wrists, Bastila reached outwards, searching the surrounding area through the Force and finding no immediate danger. Frowning slightly, the Padawan scowled as she glanced down at her bound feet, untying the cable and searching for her saber quickly before coming to the conclusion that she was disarmed and stuffed in a closet. A roomy closet, but a closet none-the-less.

"Oh this is just marvelous. I'll never hear the end of this if Revan comes to the rescue."  
Revan coming to her rescue seemed... unlikely, but Bastila knew it would happen. The deposed Sith Lord obviously had an unhealthy obsession with her that she feared she might be returning on a small level, at least enough to question the Jedi Council. The teachings she accepted, though she still questioned them at times. Acceptance and belief were two very different things and the only thing Bastila believed in at that moment was that Revan's retribution for this slight would be swift, violent and likely very messy. Trying to recall how she ended up stuffed in a closet, Bastila's mind formed the image of the medical facility Revan was being treated in, a flash of fiery-red hair and then a soft hiss as a dart shot from a wrist-gauntlet. The Force hadn't warned her of the danger simply because Mira had no intention of killing or harming the Jedi. Whether it was a remnant of her innocence that the Mandalorians and later the thugs of Nar Shaddaa had failed to beat out of her, or simply greed for wanting the higher bounty given for live captures, Mira did little beyond apprehending her targets and turning them over, though her motives in regards to Bastila were not of such a shady origin. Standing, Bastila moved quietly to the door of the closet, holding her hand against the cool durasteel and closing her eyes. She could vaguely sense Revan nearby, though the Mandalorian was too focused on his task to return her subtle probe of his mind. Frowning when she sensed a bit of relief from Revan as she touched his mind, Bastila crossed her arms, frowning at the sealed door before rolling her eyes and waving her hand. The Force answered the Padawan's call and the doorway opened, revealing a dank storage garage with several containers and weapons as well as a cot pulled up beside a table.

"At least things are looking up."  
Bastila muttered to herself as she spotted her lightsaber resting on the table. Holding out her hand, Bastila called on the Force, the saberstaff's reassuring weight soon in her hand as it hopped from the table and flew to her outstretched hand. Giving the place a cursory glance, Bastila noticed a small computer terminal next to a long-range communications relay with a datapad resting on it. Deciding to research her own abduction while she waited for Revan's arrival, Bastila clipped her saber to her belt, casually sitting in the chair before the terminal as she took the datapad and scrolled through its information. The Padawan's eyes widened slightly and she paled considerably when she saw why she had been abducted and she overcame her shock, rising to her feet and running as quickly as she could to where she could sense Revan. The datapad dropped to the floor, forgotten in the Padawan's hasty withdrawal and it flickered off, the name of the contract's owner blinking out of sight as the display shut down.

_"Helena Shan, resident of Anchorhead Tatooine."_

Bastila Shan sprinted as quickly as her legs and the Force could carry her, her breath coming in harsh gasps as she ran down the corridors leading to Mira's hideout. The contract wasn't a bounty contract per se, merely a request from her mother to communicate with her daughter, a modest sum of credits offered to anyone who could assist. A weight was forming in Bastila's stomach as she ran, her chest constricting as she thought of what Revan might do to someone who was trying to help her. She resented her mother, but even she would not deny some curiosity and perhaps even a faint amount of hope the message offered. She often sat awake at nights during her training, wondering what her mother was like and only remembering the cold resentment. As a Jedi, she should have been above such emotions but she found herself illogically harboring the feelings. They were familiar, were the only connection she truly felt towards her father and she gasped for a breath, her eyes stinging as she wondered what had become of the kindly man she remembered who passed on words of encouragement and comfort to her as she was handed over to the Jedi Order.

_"Revan!! Can you hear me? You must not kill the hunter, she was merely trying to help me!"  
_Bastila frantically called on the Force, broadcasting her position to all Force-sensitives in the area as she tried to contact Revan through her bond. She could sense a growing annoyance within the former Dark Lord at the distraction, though she could not tell if he was listening to her or not. If Revan killed the hunter, she doubted she would ever be able to be in the same room as him again, let alone think of redeeming him.

Revan, his injuries weighting heavily on his patience, had enough of chasing Mira and the Wookiee stalking her. Moving from his cover, Revan made a beeline for Hanharr, simply raising his hand and sending a powerful Force-push towards the Wookiee that threw the crazed bounty hunter over the side of the walkway. Hitting an adjacent walkway a dozen meters below, Hanharr lay still, dazed and slowly losing consciousness as he wondered absently if anyone had seen the speeder that had struck him. Slipping into unconsciousness, the Wookiee silently raged as he blamed Mira for the distraction, growling in his unnatural sleep as he pondered the terrible things he would do to the red-haired hunter when he caught her.

"What the Hell?"  
Mira said aloud, glancing behind her to see Hanharr of all people falling over the edge of the walkway she was on several dozen meters behind her. The former Mandalorian slave's eyes widened when she spotted the being responsible and she cursed under her breath, turning and running as quickly as she could towards her hideout. She had to get to the Jedi, let her know who was following her. Hell, she was the one who was supposed to have killed Revan and that had to say something about her. Remembering sneaking up on the Padawan and subduing her when the Padawan raised a weapon against her warily, Mira rolled her eyes. Of course a simple request to deliver a message wouldn't go as smoothly as it should have. That's what you get for doing the _right_ thing. Sneering slightly, Mira suddenly found her steps slowing and furrowed her brow in confusion as she came to a complete stop, her body not answering her brain's call to run. Hovering several inches in the air, Mira's form turned in mid-air one-hundred and eighty degrees to come face to face with the destroyer of the Mandalorian race. A dozen thoughts raced through Mira's mind as the Sith Lord stared into her eyes, her heart pounding as she stared at him with wide eyes. The glowing red blade in Revan's hand raised and pointing at her threateningly spurred Mira to open her mouth.

"Don't you bloody dare, Revan!"  
Bastila Shan's voice surprised Mira and she caught sight of a brown blur to her left while Revan remained frozen in place a moment, silently going over what the Padawan had been trying to tell him mentally. The distance between them as well as the lack of a line of sight had significantly garbled the telepathic message and Revan glanced at the Padawan, his masked features tilting to the side as he thumbed the switch to his saber and crossed his arms, the saber inactive but still in his right hand as it tapped against his left shoulder in annoyance. From the expression on Bastila's face, it was obvious whatever silent conversation going on was not going favorably.

"Would you just bloody release her!?"

The Padawan finally spat, her face showing weary annoyance, as if Revan threatening people was a common occurrence. Mira felt the invisible hands holding her in place withdraw and experimentally flexed her hands, then moved her arms, twisting her head slightly till it popped to remove an uncomfortable pressure that had been building.

"You don't expect me to believe that this... bounty hunter was simply relaying a message to you from your... your mother?"  
Revan's expression was priceless, but behind a mask it was lost on the two young women and Bastila glanced towards Mira while Mira returned the gesture, both raising eyebrows as they took stock of one another.  
"I was trying to warn Princess here you all were being stalked by bounty hunters when she spun on me with her weapon... didn't really have much of a choice but to get you back to the hideout and... I guess the binders and restraints were a little too much but you did draw your weapon on me..."  
Mira offered an unapologetic smirk which Bastila merely rolled her eyes at. Mission was becoming a bad influence on her patience and this one was no different.

"Yes, I'm sorry. I merely mistook you for one of said bounty hunters when you drew your weapon on me!"  
Mira grimaced slightly, offering a half-chuckle as she absently rubbed the back of her neck. The pressure had receded but she knew Revan was preparing to snap her neck when the Padawan had stopped him. Her mind blanking for a moment, Mira was curious as to why a Jedi Padawan and a Sith Lord would be talking to one another and not fighting before stopping the train of thought as her mouth got ahead of her brain.

"Aren't you dead... and... didn't she kill you?"  
Mira asked Revan while the deposed Sith Lord observed the two women's bickering with amusement. Revan offered a simple shrug, his eyes inspecting Bastila for any sign of injury before he finally relaxed, uncrossing his arms to put his saber away. A good sign, considering who he was.

"I am very much alive, though the Jedi Order seems to be sparing no expense in trying to kill me and neither has the Republic or the Sith Empire. I believe the question as to why you drew your weapon on Bastila remains in need of an answer."  
Sensing a hint of a threat behind that, Mira quickly filled in the holes, nervous and confused about the two unlikely... companions. By all rights they should have been fighting each other to the death, not relaxing in each other's presence.

"Another hunter showed, was trying to get a shot in on the Jedi and she was distracted so I took a shot at him and then she pulled her weapon on me. Didn't have time to explain so I just... knocked her out and brought her home with me."  
Revan chuckled at that while Bastila frowned, trying to recall the memory. She only had a faint recollection of the events due to the tranquilizer dart's powerful drug but she could sense no deceit in Mira. Revan glanced over his shoulder in paranoia, turning back to the two women with a concerned frown beneath his mask.

"Much as I enjoy a good fight, I've had enough for one day. Lets get somewhere less... exposed if we're going to make an afternoon of this."  
Revan followed Bastila and Mira back to the hunter's hideout. Mentally tossing the facts around in his mind, Revan decided to trust the young bounty hunter's intentions. There was no malice around Mira and Revan calmly leaned against the wall when they reached the hunter's hideout while Mira explained the contract to Bastila.

"I was sorting through some high-end bounties on the holonet and I found yours... my sources were pretty sure you were heading this way, especially with Calo Nord in the area..."  
Bastila turned a concerned glance towards Revan, the deposed Sith Lord merely chuckling at the mention of Calo.

"Juhani, Mission and I took care of him. Permanently this time."  
MIra, having seen the beginning of the battle shivered slightly, glad that Revan appeared to be reasonable for the time being. Reasonable meaning he hadn't killed her. Bastila's lips pressed together into a thin line as she caught the stray thoughts from Revan's mind, recalling the battle. With a critical eye, Bastila took in Revan's appearance, seeing small scorches and holes in his cloak, telling of the duel as well as darker spots where his blood was soaking the fabric of his black robes. Concerned slightly, Bastila subtly searched Revan's Force-aura for any injury, mentally sighing in relief when nothing serious presented itself.

"Yes well... I cannot say I am displeased with the man's demise. It will be nice to have less skilled hunters trying to find me as opposed to _him._"

Curious, Mira glanced between the two, her sharp eyes not missing the concern that had flashed on the Padawan's features when she was eyeing the supposedly deceased Dark Lord. Feeling the hunter's gaze, Revan turned to stare at Mira, taking in her features which were strangely familiar to him. A slight tilt of the head had Revan out of the conversation as he scanned his memories for the reason behind the familiarity. The answer came faster than he expected when he turned his eyes to Mira's Mandalorian gauntlets.

"You're a Mandalorian."  
Revan stated. Mira frowned, crossing her arms as she glared at the deposed Dark Lord, raising an eyebrow in defiance.

"You got a problem with that?"  
The hunter asked, mentally cringing as she recalled just how much of a problem most of the Jedi had with Mandalorians by the time Malachor V came around. The response Mira received consisted of the deposed Dark Lord staring at her through his mask and saying nothing. Revealing his origins, while entertaining at times, was not one of Revan's favorite things to do and he felt no need in reliving past battles in that moment. Dwelling in the past in general was bad and Revan felt insanity claw at his mind, a psychotic break he'd suffered four years before, at the edge of Republic space making itself known once more. Not that Revan noticed, he merely pressed his thoughts to a more immediate concern. Sith Lord or not, Mandalorian or not, Revan was human and had been guided by morals at one point and what he'd done couldn't simply be ignored, much as he would have tried. Of course, the mind of a planet-killing mass murderer doesn't work like that of a normal person's and Revan had taken on the burden, the sins as a strategy in a age-old war, one he had looked at with forced detachment until Malak had betrayed him.

With Malak's betrayal, came the memories. His reason for doing what he had as the Dark Lord had been lost and the bond he shared with the young Padawan forced emotions on him he'd long ago repressed. Emotions that would drive him insane, if he dwelled on them too long. Clenching his jaw as he fought down the emotions bombarding him through the bond with Bastila, Revan forced up a mental shield, keeping the Padawan out of his mind, though as the Jedi spoke quietly to Mira about the message from her mother, Revan knew she wouldn't have sensed his turmoil anyways. A bead of sweat ran down the deposed Sith Lord's face and Revan took in a steadying breath, letting it out with a rattle of his shoulders as he pushed himself from the wall and began pacing impatiently. He was starting to feel decidedly troubled at that point, not certain where to go. He could go through Malak's Sith Empire or the Republic searching for allies to fight the coming war, but that was pointless. His actions until Malak's betrayal ensured the Republic and his Sith would take any outside interference from beyond the Rim seriously.

All too soon, Bastila and Mira had finished their conversation, the Padawan bowing to the hunter and moving to the exit while Revan remained pacing, lost in his thoughts. Noticing the former Dark Lord's distraction, Bastila frowned, her brow furrowing with worry as she subtly scanned the former Jedi through the Force. His injuries were mainly superficial, though they required some attention and his thoughts were shielded, though she could sense some turmoil within.

"Revan..."  
Bastila began, stopping when the former Sith Lord turned to stare at her through his mask. A disturbance shifted through the Force and Bastila tensed, suddenly feeling even more uncomfortable in the presence of the deposed Sith Lord. Revan was coming to a decision and what that decision entailed made the Padawan pause to consider where she and the others lay in his plans.

"Speak of my existence, hunter, and I will make your end a long one."  
Mira scowled at Revan's threat, putting on an unconcerned front when she felt intimidated by him. She knew he would carry out the threat without hesitation, but she also knew he would honor the silent reprieve. Nodding to the former Dark Lord, Mira watched him leave, chancing a glance at Bastila as she followed Revan with her eyes before following, the Padawan's shoulders rising in a silent sigh before she started after Revan. Making sure her door was sealed, Mira sat down on her cot, stifling a yawn as she considered her options. With a shrug, the hunter laid down, closing her eyes and allowing sleep to consume her. She'd stick it out on Nar Shaddaa, keep good on her contracts and avoid the other hunters. They'd figure out sooner or later that she didn't have Bastila anymore and they'd give up.

"What are your plans now, Revan?"  
Bastila asked softly, matching Revan's pace as they left the Red sector. The former General of the Republic looked troubled, from what she could tell with what little body language was visible and she slowly allowed her mind to open to his, allowing the former Sith to view her thoughts, her intentions towards him, stopping short of more recent, personal feeling that left her with more questions than answers. Blushing slightly at the train of thought, Bastila cast it aside, seeing Revan all but stop as he turned to stare at her, his mask giving no sign of his expression, though she could sense unease on his part, restlessness.

"A hundred worlds burn by my hand, ten billions lives reduced to ashes. How I am remembered is not important to me, Bastila. It has never been, because who I am is not important, only my message. You have opened your mind to mine, so I shall return the favor. I've no further reason to pursue my war against the Republic, nor do I feel the need to continue as I have been... my goals I set out to achieve, all of them have been reached. The galaxy is being plunged into darkness and the light the Jedi held over the Republic for a thousand years is diminished. Balance within the Force has been achieved and I've given the galaxy what I wished to."  
Revan never expected victory against the True Sith. Despite all the powers opened to him by the darkside, by the Star Forge, Revan knew the galaxy was doomed to the True Sith. Their powers were beyond unnatural, their ability to drain the life of any Force-sensitive who even partially registered in the light was terrifying even to him and Revan did what he could to offer the galaxy all he could. A fighting chance. Without the _Thought Bomb _as it had been dubbed, Revan knew the Sith would be forced into a conventional battle, forced to fight with ships and soldiers that the Republic and his Sith had an abundance of. The Sith still outnumbered the Jedi horrendously, but Revan knew it gave them a chance, far more a chance than they would have otherwise.

"See what I see, Bastila. Know, what I know. Trust not in the Force, but yourself. See what the True Sith have been planning for a thousand years."  
Bastila, seeing Revan's thoughts, staggered slightly at the implications, physically ill at what she was seeing. Revan's mind had held a burden she couldn't understand, could no longer condemn when she saw his intentions. Revan was plunging the galaxy into darkness to save it, not destroy it. His wasn't a war of annihilation with the Jedi, but one of conversion. Convert them to the Sith's teachings to make them free of the damage done by the Sith's Thought Bomb and in so doing, give them a chance to fight off and destroy the True Sith once and for all. Coming out of the vision granted to her of Revan's thoughts and memories, Bastila panted, trying to regain her equilibrium as she stared at Revan in silent respect. She couldn't have done what he had, she doubted the Jedi Council would even consider it but what she saw, felt from Revan's memories was no subterfuge, no lie, and she found she could understand why he did as he had, and not hate him. She still hated what he'd done to the Republic and the Jedi Order, but the knowledge of the True Sith and the source of their unnatural power cast a new light on Revan.

"Lets go, Bastila. Tatooine is rather lovely this time of year..."  
Revan turned to Bastila, the meaningful look on his face lost because of his mask, though Bastila could feel it through the bond. A half-smile curved Bastila's mouth as she realized Revan was giving her a chance to visit with her mother and she allowed herself a moment to appreciate the gesture. With the bond between them open, she knew it was an honest offer and not some poor effort at manipulation and she found herself thankful for the bond for once. Revan took in Bastila's half-smile, his own lips curving to match the Padawan's expression as he took in her features. She looked beautiful when she smiled. Keeping that thought to himself, Revan gently reached out, allowing his hand to lower to the small of Bastila's back as he urged her to move. Not resisting the gesture or taking offence, Bastila and Revan turned to head towards the _Ebon Hawk_, oblivious to their own concerns for one peaceful moment. All too soon, Revan's smile dropped from his face as he subtly searched his and Bastila's surroundings, alert to any possible dangers while Bastila worked out her own confusing thoughts. She found she could respect Revan and for once, it didn't bring the crushing guilt she felt when she debating the merits of saving his life. As for Revan, the monster within the former Sith Lord remained unchanged, caged for the time being and awaiting its moment. Sooner or later, Revan would need that monster and when he did, it wouldn't be a pretty sight.

AN/Disclaimer: The Line; "Who I am is not important, but my message is," is a direct quote from Revan in the new KOTOR comic series, when he was under the name Revanchist.


	23. Chapter 22: Anchorhead

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"This world is about as hospitable as Mandalore. At least he had the decency to welcome you with a blade. If we aren't careful, our bones will join the countless others buried here and we'll be nothing more than footnotes in history, entombed beneath the sands of time. Be sharp, Malak, lest our complacency dooms us."_

_General Revan to General Alec Squinquargesimus "Alias Malak" During the Quest for the Star Forge_

Chapter 22: Anchorhead

Revan sat on the single medical bed making up the _Ebon Hawk's _med bay, removing his armored gauntlets and leather gloves before methodically undoing the straps to his mask, breastplate and cloak. Silence permeated the _Hawk _as it traveled through hyperspace towards Tatooine, Canderous resigning himself to overlooking the controls in the cockpit while Mission, Zalbaar and T3 made sure the ship was running properly. Removing his cloak, Revan slowly removed his black tunic, the overlay of the Dark Jedi robes burned and torn from the explosion he was forced to take when he, Mission and Juhani were attacked by Calo and a group of Bounty Hunters. Seeing that yet another set of once-pristine robes were ruined, Revan silently sighed, his shoulders rising and falling slightly at the gesture as he carefully set the tattered and bloodied tunic on top of his armor and cloak. Stretching slightly, Revan winced as he pulled one of his healing injuries, reopening the wound. Dark red blood seeped from the cut, telling of its depth and Revan remained seated on the medical bed while Bastila's small but nimble hands brushed over his shoulders and neck, checking for any shrapnel still imbedded in his wounds while Juhani stood at the doorway, her arms crossed as she regarded the actions between the two with a frown. The Force was bright between the two, Bastila's bathed in the light while Revan's was something else. It was dark, but his aura was so bright, it was almost painful to stare at and Juhani blinked away the pain in her eyes, sighing as she moved to the medical scanner, running a diagnosis on the machine before turning it to Revan. What had troubled her about Revan's and Bastila's auras was how intertwined they were. She'd seen similar things in the Master/Padawan bond most Jedi Masters shared with their apprentices, but she found it to be stronger than her own was with her Master Quatra. Frowning, Juhani noted absently that there were still fragments of duracrete and durasteel still imbedded within Revan, as well as several cracked ribs and a bruised lung, no doubt a result of the concussion of the explosive Calo's Bounty Hunters had used.

"It's a good thing you brought back medical supplies from wherever you and Canderous went to. I wouldn't have been able to treat some of these injuries otherwise..."  
Bastila said slowly, her brow pinched in concern as she went over the details of Juhani's scans. The Cathar said nothing, grabbing an injector and preparing some painkillers while Bastila began wrapping Revan's chest and subtly probing his body through the Force, the energies boosting the former Dark Lord's healing rate. Revan allowed the two young women to tend his injuries, his features carefully blank as he considered his options. Bastila would be troublesome to deal with unless he allowed her to deal with her mother. That said, Revan knew Tatooine was a certainty and he scowled towards the bulkhead as he pictured the desert world in his mind's eye. Noticing the scowl, Juhani tensed, frowning at Revan and glancing at the wall before looking back at him and catching his eyes on her. Flushing slightly, Juhani carefully collected herself, repeating the Jedi Code in her mind to maintain her slipping grasp on reality. Revan's presence was a crossroads to her. A mixture of her wish to embrace her Cathar heritage, yet also a reminder of what could happen if she fully turned her back on the Jedi's teachings. She did not wish to embrace darkness, nor did she wish to be a slave to the light.

"I swore I'd never return to this blasted world..."  
Revan muttered to himself, much to Bastila and Juhani's surprise. Not knowing quite what to say, neither Jedi spoke as the deposed Dark Lord lay back on the medical bed, closing his eyes and drifting slowly off to sleep. Careful not to jar his injuries, Bastila positioned Revan comfortably before glancing at Juhani.

"I'm sure we could all use some rest. Canderous will watch over the _Hawk_ and I am certain Mission will be here soon to keep Revan occupied while he heals. Come, Juhani. We've much to discuss."  
Juhani nodded, her features set in a severe expression as she followed Bastila to the chambers reserved for the female portion of the _Ebon Hawk's _crew. Seating herself on her own bunk, Juhani glanced at Bastila as she removed her cloak and all but collapsed onto her bunk.

"The scans showed me something I did not wish to believe, Juhani. The Jedi Order did indeed perform some type of surgery on Revan's brain and as I was told his mind was too damaged to recover its memories by the Council, I wonder if we're all doomed to this madness sweeping the galaxy."

Juhani, having gotten a cut-down version of what had happened to Revan while in the Jedi's custody, frowned. Catching the look, Bastila sighed, slowly beginning her version of what had happened on Revan's flagship, and what she knew of Revan's activities between Dantooine and Taris. Juhani listened with growing horror, a dread like nothing else she'd ever felt before settling over her. The Jedi had purposely damaged Revan's mind and replaced his personality. They'd failed of course, but the scans spoke of an invasive and damaging surgery and there were even trace amounts of the chemical neural suppressant the Healers had used for the process still present in Revan's brain.

"How- how could the Council or the Healers do such a thing? It- it violates every oath, every value their beliefs are based upon. We- we cannot trust the Jedi to care for Revan... I- I cannot trust the Jedi..."  
Juhani looked appalled, her accent growing thicker with each word she spoke. Bastila could only silently nod her agreement to a conclusion she had reached when she had left Dantooine. In the medical bay of the _Ebon Hawk,_ Revan smirked slightly as he slowly opened his eyes. It was so easy manipulating people. Especially when you used the truth to your advantage. A pang of guilt struck the former Sith Lord and Revan sighed silently, disgusted with his lack of control. The bond between Bastila and himself allowed a sharing of emotions that he had long ago repressed. Hardly willing to force his way into Bastila's mind and turn her into a mindless drone, unable to feel or act, Revan merely endured the emotions, relying on what he knew of the True Sith's plans for the galaxy to endure the unpleasant thoughts Bastila's responses through the bond provoked within himself. The Padawan's emotions were less a guide to his own and more a contradiction. Bastila's views of what was right and wrong were so strong that it reminded Revan of a time when he'd cared... and when he'd lost himself to the madness his fall had entailed.

A third of the Republic fleet had been in Revan's hands by the time he'd gained the rank of Supreme Commander and only a handful of that number returned from the Outer Rim after they'd found the Star Forge to retake the Republic as Sith. Revan allowed his mind to wander for a moment over the billions of lives extinguished in that year he and Malak searched for Rakata Prime and battled the True Sith and he could not control the shaking in his hands as he remembered the meaningless battles and horrendous losses his soldiers had suffered between Malachor V and Foerost. He'd taken the Republic fleet at Foerost because he'd needed it. Not that the few thousand ships he'd captured in their drydocks had been more than a grain of sand that was the desert of the Republic's numbers. The galaxy seemed to have forgotten the entire of the Mandalorian race, five billion warriors with enough starships to carry them to battle had been up in arms against the Republic and had been reduced to no more than a few hundred thousand. With the losses for the Republic Military nearly ten times that of the Mandalorian's, Revan wondered briefly what the civilian casualties were. There had never been an accurate count and the Mandalorians didn't really draw a line between warrior and civilian. All Mandalorians had fought in the war and the meager handful that remained could hardly match even the small numbers of the Jedi Order.

"War is a costly endeavor..."  
Bastila's soft voice drew a start from Revan as he glanced at the Padawan. Surprised that she had been able to approach him undetected, Revan frowned in annoyance and confusion, wondering if he had been that distracted by his own thoughts. At the Padawan's pointed look, Revan flinched slightly, knowing he had been concentrating on extremely unpleasant memories and likely had been bombarding the bond with their disturbing imagery.

"I lost over thirty billion soldiers between Iridonia and Foerost, between the Mandalorians and the True Sith. I'm told that is a third of what was lost in the first year of battle between the Republic and my Sith and that the civilian casualties of both conflicts exceeds the entire of the combat casualties by a factor of five times. In two wars that span the entire of the galaxy, such numbers are considered small, meaningless even... but this is the most costly war the galaxy has fought in a millennium. Add on top of that the fact that the Republic in this... Jedi Civil War has lost three times as many soldiers as the Sith, not to mention the ships and materials and it is still a mere fraction of a fraction of a percent in the large picture. How can there be so many trillions of lives in the galaxy, yet be so few deaths? If I burned a hundred other worlds as populated as Telos and Taris were, I wouldn't even make one percent by the time I died of old age. Do the realize the sheer scale of what I was doing? I may not have been able to burn so many worlds, but I did get my message across, I made them fear me, fear what awaits beyond the rim."  
Bastila's features were pale as she listened to Revan, disturbed by how he so casually spoke of the murders of billions of innocents. Seeing the troubled look on Revan's face, Bastila waited for him to continue, half-wishing he wouldn't.

"The... True Sith were able to feed on the life-energy of beings, their Force-auras. Without it, what they fed on would wither away and die. What took an entire fleet of Malak's Sith to do to Taris, a single True Sith could do from a ship in orbit. For some reason, they cannot consume the energy of the darkside so well as the light and it... weakens them, perhaps even hurts them. We tried for most of a year to fight the Sith, but only those of us lost in rage and darkness were able to survive... I learned then, on the edge of known space what was needed to assure the very survival of the galaxy. If the Sith were able to breach the Republic's borders and send those of their numbers that knew this technique, you can understand how the lives lost in the Mandalorian wars and the war Malak and I waged would be next to nothing in comparison, can't you? We had to... corrupt the galaxy to limit, to weaken the True Sith's powers. It was the only defense we could conceive of that would work. No amount of Jedi serenity could stop the True Sith's onslaught and you can go out to the Rim and search the lifeless hulks of ten thousand of my ships if you wish, see the corpses of those that followed me from Malachor V to end that threat to know I speak the truth."  
Revan allowed Bastila to search the bond, to see that he was speaking the absolute truth. It wasn't simply the loss of so many of his soldiers on their campaign against the True Sith that was so devastating so much as it was the manner in which they died. They'd been slaughtered, swatted away like insects when the True Sith had unleashed their powers and only the fact that many of the ships carried a number of battle droids with intuitive artificial intelligence, early versions of the HK-50 model, were the Sith driven back from the edge of the Republic. Not that it would last, the Sith had been preparing for a thousand years and while the massive amounts of battle droids from the Star Forge and the HK-50 factories were helping to reinforce the Rim, Revan did not trust Malak to keep his attention on the True Sith. Malak was unstable, likely insane and Revan was fairly certain the True Sith were going to back off until Malak's Sith and the Republic and Jedi killed one or the other off. It would save them the trouble and leave their conquest of the Galaxy that much easier.

"We turned on each other out there, blamed each other for the losses we were taking, hated each other. The only thing that kept us from killing everyone around us was our hatred of the True Sith. We took their name to mock them, took the names the Mandalorians gave us, Revan, the Lord of Revenge, Malak the Deceiver and called ourselves Darth. It was enough to keep us from killing one another out there, but barely. If we hadn't been fighting against the Sith for our lives we would have killed each other off long before we came back to the Republic. The Star Forge... That is what stopped us, gave us hope."  
Bastila frowned at the term, the image of a massive space station flashing in her mind as it siphoned energy from a nameless star. She'd heard of the Star Forge before, when Revan had been so terribly wounded on his flagship that he could only say a handful of words, he had mentioned the Forge and from what she had gathered of the few Sith and Dark Jedi that had been captured by the Republic since the war began, the name was the only intelligence the Jedi Order or the Republic had on the Star Forge.

"The Star Forge is a relic of a once galaxy-spanning empire made by a now primitive species called the Rakatans. They used the darkside of the Force to control vast and powerful fleets of ships, worlds and slaves and theirs is the base of all the technology the Sith are currently using against the Republic. You've seen much of it from my subconscious through our bond, no doubt."  
Bastila nodded shakily. She had seen more than she wanted to in Revan's subconscious mind, but still, however damning the facts and Revan's admissions, Bastila could not entirely blame him for what he had done. He had actively made a decision, a cold and logical and emotionless decision to safeguard the whole of the galaxy against an outside threat and while his methods were appalling and barbaric, they had done what was needed to stabilize the Force, to taint the galaxy just enough to take away the True Sith's advantage. Bastila stayed in the _Ebon Hawk's_ medical bay the rest of that night, listening to Revan speak of ancient enemies, lost battles and forgotten hope and she knew, the flickering in Revan's essence, in his soul was his sanity. She knew as he relived each event he spoke of through their bond, through _her_ emotions that he was repeating what had happened before, that he was losing himself in his darkness and madness. Reaching out slowly, the Padawan gently laid her hand on Revan's, the touch causing the bond between the two to flare as their thoughts grew more focused, more powerful and clear through the contact. Bastila tried not to flinch as she felt the rush of Revan's thoughts as Revan started, his brown eyes turning to her gray as he met and held her gaze, saying nothing as the Padawan tightened her grip on his hand. She knew why he'd done what he had and she found herself unable to hate him, to resent him. She found she could forgive him if only he tried to hold on to the good man he had once been.

Taking a deep breath, Bastila began speaking softly to Revan, telling him about her childhood, about what she could remember about her family and her first years in the Jedi Order and she felt a calm settle over her as the flickering in Revan's aura subsided to a gentle pulsing, the brightness of his aura dulled, but not bleeding with as much resentment and darkness as it had before. She found that talking about what she feared of the coming confrontation with her past, with her family and her beliefs towards the Jedi Order had the same effect Revan's confession had on him. The bond between the deposed Sith Lord and the Jedi Padawan subtly grew stronger as they offered silent comfort and strength to one another, no longer fighting the connection or their preconceptions of one another. Revan felt his mind ease with the thousands of questions that had plagued him. He had not expected to explain himself to anyone over his actions or the reasoning behind it but Bastila had silently asked him to tell her with her eyes, to explain the terrifying visions that invaded her dreams and he had relented, surprised that the Padawan explained what he was feeling through her own experiences, allowing him to clarify his responses to their shared memories from hers. Settling back into the medical bed, Revan allowed his guard to lower ever so slightly with the Padawan, his eyes slowly closing as he felt a tentative peace settle over his troubled mind. Bastila, exhausted and drained of energy remained seated beside the sleeping former Jedi, her eyes allowing tears that Revan refused to have fall as she finally understood the entirety of Revan's betrayal. It was not a betrayal of the Republic or the Jedi Order so much as it was a desperate attempt to thwart, or in the very least wound an enemy that had destructive powers beyond any she could have imagined hours before. Revan's betrayal had been of his comrades, his fellow Jedi that had followed him to fight the Mandalorians and the soldiers he commanded. He had sacrificed not only the lives, but also the souls of those closest to him to buy the galaxy time to fight the True Sith, time the Republic and Jedi Order had wasted and would continue to waste, long after Malak and his Sith were nothing but an unpleasant memory.

Kaera Nurr felt a sense of foreboding echoing through the Force and shivered almost in-perceptively. The air of Tatooine was arid and dry, though the unforgiving heat beat down upon her relentlessly, even in Anchorhead's streets as the smell of unwashed bodies, unprocessed fuel and what could only be described as the scent of burning metal drifted into her nostrils along with an unhealthy amount of sand. Choking back a cough, Kaera spit out a mouthful of sand, the wind from the receding sandstorm still howling as the sky cleared. The Jedi Knight has seen poverty and barbarism that gave Taris' Undercity a run for its credits and she fought silently with herself over the logic of interfering. Czerka Corporation had been kind enough to allow her and Carth's transport to land, but they were not in an official Republic protected system and the laws, or lack thereof, were regulated by Czerka and not any form of government. A beep from her wrist drew Kaera's attention to her communicator and she raised it to her mouth, flicking the switch as she kept a wary watch of her surroundings. She'd learned on Taris and especially on Dantooine after the Mandalorian had knocked her unconscious to be careful. Her assurance within the Force was lacking as of late, her mind wondering if it was not her eyes, but the Force that she had to worry about in regards to deceit.

"Kaera, go ahead."  
The Jedi stated tonelessly, her voice rough, but lacking any real emotion. A crackle of static sounded over the comm and Kaera rose a brow as she realized it was on a Jedi carrier wave and not a standard Republic channel.

"Kaera? Its Bastila Shan. I've... picked up your comm's transponder signal on Tatooine... is- is this correct?"  
The Jedi Knight felt an undefinable emotion pass through her. It was one part relief, and another part confusion. No one had any news on Bastila Shan aside from a vague report intercepted from Hutt space about an active bounty. Still, good as it was to hear that Bastila was well, Kaera knew the Padawan was last in the presence of an injured Darth Revan with an unknown and decidedly untrustworthy Cathar Dark Jedi. She'd learned from the Council that Juhani had attacked her Master in anger and that she was personally connected to Revan in some way. It didn't take much digging into the archives to figure out the connection and Kaera frowned thoughtfully as she turned her attention to her communicator, as if it would answer her silent questions for her.

"First questions first. Are you well?"  
On the _Ebon Hawk_, Revan gave a half-hearted snort of disgust. The Jedi's tone was absent of emotion, a courtesy given between Jedi in its delivery that he'd heard countless times before when he himself had been a Jedi Knight. Bastila sent Revan a chastising glare, though there was no real annoyance behind the look, merely a wish to keep any conversations civil. Juhani crossed her arms unconsciously as she realized her status as a rogue Jedi, possibly a Dark Jedi had never been resolved with the Council and she wondered briefly if she wished to fully integrate herself within the Jedi Order once more. She had seen how Revan acted firsthand and while there was no doubt that he was tainted with the Darkside, she did not believe it ruled his actions as it did many of the other Dark Jedi. If anything, Juhani saw Revan's control over his anger and emotional responses a reflection of the Jedi's teachings, though decidedly less forgiving in some regards. Canderous had set the _Hawk_ on autopilot and was glaring at the communicator in the center of the ship's main hold area, his disgust apparent. Mission and Zalbaar stood beside the Mandalorian warrior with uncertain expressions, the Twi'lek absently rubbing one of her lekku while Zalbaar growled lightly. T3-M4 merely beeped solemnly, concerned for his master Revan but otherwise lacking in any real feelings in regards to the absent former comrades.

"I am unharmed, Kaera. Thank you, it is good to hear you are well."  
On Tatooine, Kaera's frown deepened slightly. A missing Jedi, especially one as important as Bastila Shan in the middle of a war was too blatant a danger to ignore and she knew that the weeks since she had last seen the Padawan were likely spent in the company of Darth Revan and the likes of Canderous Ordo.

"I take it you are still traveling with... his Lordship?"  
Kaera allowed her annoyance to get the better of her and she could hear a crackle over the communicator before Revan's voice filtered through, an undercurrent of amusement that chilled her coming through loud and clear.

"I am feeling better than I have in weeks, Kaera. Thank you for your concern. The purpose of this communication is for me to inform you of the futility of your quest. I know why you are on Tatooine and you won't find it. Even if you could, you lack the skills to bypass the threats involved in uncovering the Starmap. Perhaps we can come to an... agreement on this matter."  
Kaera noticed vaguely that Revan's accent became more refined as he spoke, more heavy in Coruscant's telltale Core dialect and she wondered as to the man's understanding of languages. She knew his voice had wavered between a crude Concord Dawn accent to a refined and deceptive Core accent. The deposed SIth Lord's record gave enough in the way of languages to leave her feeling severely lacking and she wondered briefly at the obsession the man obviously possessed in regards to his many talents and skills. A ridiculous amount she was sure, but one he'd had over a quarter of a century to refine and pursued with a seriousness that few youths ever displayed.

"I'm hardly going to listen to you on this matter. Are- has he done anything to you, Bastila? Made- Forced you to- to do anything against your will?"  
A single brow rose slightly on Bastila's forehead as she glanced at Revan with a look of contemplation. As far as she was concerned, Revan had been straightforward and honest with her. He'd even shown a respectable amount of growth, thought there was still a long ways to go before Bastila felt she could trust the man to his own devices. Her job was no longer to spy on him, as the Council had originally intended, but to guide him, to be his conscience and she knew it was the right decision, the only decision that would save the man. Even if he refused to entertain such a thought and he still took rather barbaric pleasure in his frequent displays of violence.

"Why of course, Kaera. He's simply become unbearable. You wouldn't believe the indignities he's forced upon me. Why, just the other night he forced me to-"  
Revan cut the communication, glaring moodily at the Padawan while Canderous rose a brow, smirking at the Jedi with an impressed and respectful look.

"I didn't know you had a sense of humor under there, Princess."

Scowling slightly at Canderous as the Mandalorian chuckled lightly, Bastila turned her attention back to Revan, raising both of her brows in silent question and allowing her annoyance to show clearly through the bond.

"She doesn't need to know everything, Bastila. And I cannot guarantee that I won't kill her if she attacks me, or Onasi for that matter. I am certain the good Commander is not far from her and it makes your... personal business much more difficult. Not only do we have to avoid those two fools as well as the Sith, we also have to worry about what they are relaying to the Council or the Republic. I am in no mood to live out my days in a Forcecage and any other options would result in death, either mine or theirs. We must move carefully from this point on if we are to avoid attracting attention..."  
Revan turned from Bastila to address Canderous as the Mandalorian sneered slightly.

"Not that I have a problem with violent confrontations, we just don't need the Republic fleet making our journey more troubling than it already is. Dodging Sith patrols, while fun, is not going to be as rewarding should the Republic join in the pursuit."  
Canderous nodded grudgingly at the logic in Revan's argument while Bastila carefully measured Revan's words. The man was willing to give Kaera and Carth a pass, so long as they didn't provoke him and considering the only reason they were setting foot on the world was because of the message from her mother, Bastila decided it was a better scenario than the alternatives. She knew Juhani wasn't against her wishes to redeem Revan, but she also knew that if it came down to a fight that the Cathar would be hesitant to assault Revan and she would be alone. Catching Revan's dark look, Bastila gave the man a bored look, letting him know she had no intention of letting her guard down in his presence, at least not until she found herself certain he held no ulterior motives. The conversation they'd had en route to Tatooine as he recovered had brought a bit of trust between them, but there was still a ways to go before Bastila felt comfortable in Revan's presence. Feeling safe was not feeling comfortable, Bastila reminded herself, intrigued by the protectiveness Revan had shown towards her on Nar Shaddaa. Neither of the bonded two, Jedi or former Jedi knew the true reason behind the display and Bastila was far from comforted with the knowledge that Revan would burn another thousand worlds if it would accomplish his goals.

The arrival of the _Ebon Hawk_ on Tatooine did not go as smoothly as Revan had hoped. A social call being the reason for their presence, Czerka Corporation made life a little difficult through landing fees as well as a delivery of a crate of... creatures of some kind if Revan's Force senses were to be believed. Glaring at the crate as it sat in the _Hawk's_ cargo bay, Revan crossed his arms, pacing back and forth as he glanced at Canderous. The older Mandalorian was using a fairly bulky scanner to identify the unknown contents of the container when Mission entered the bay, looking between the two brooding men with a sigh before she went to the crate and popped it open. Immediately, the Twi'lek cooed and lifted a small frog-like animal roughly half the size of a Mynock from the container and cuddled the creature in her arms.

"Where did you come from!"  
Mission gushed, cradling the Gizak protectively in her arms as Revan and Canderous both adopted matching looks of disgust.  
"Get that damn thing back in that crate, I'm gonna go grab a plasma grenade."  
Canderous ordered, moving to where he'd set aside some of his and Revan's equipment to carry out his threat while Mission coddled the creature in her arms protectively, turning away slightly from Canderous.

"Oh Bloody Hell, how many of those are in there?"  
Revan muttered as two Gizak jumped from the box to bounce happily through the cargo bay. Acting quickly, Revan grabbed the two, holding the creatures at an arms length as he dropped them into the container, his disgusted sneer turning to a look of abject horror as he saw the overstuffed cargo container surge as four more Gizak came out. Canderous, acting quickly snatched two of the offending creatures, growling as another one leapt out and stuffed them into the container, ignoring the small animal's pained croaks as he primed the plasma grenade and tied it in to a remote detonator before stuffing it in the mouth of one of the Gizak Revan was retrieving. Stuffing the creatures back into the crate, Canderous slammed the top down, noticing that Mission was holding two of the vermin in her arms as she glared at the two of them.

"What the Hell are you two doing! Its just an innocent, helpless little animal!"  
Revan snatched one of the Gizak from Mission's arms, snapping its neck between two fingers as she stared at him in mute shock. Taking advantage of the Twi'lek's shock, Revan grabbed the other one she was protecting and followed suit. The lifeless bodies of the Gizak were tossed into a nearby incinerator while Canderous carried the cargo container outside, a muted thump of an explosion soon following the Mandalorian's departure while Mission drew back from her shock of Revan and Canderous' barbaric displays.

"I can't believe you just did that to a helpless little creature!"  
Uneasily, Mission remembered just who was standing before her and she grimaced slightly, not noticing the three Gizak that had escaped Revan and Canderous' notice hopping along happily through their new home. Revan regarded the Twi'lek through impassive eyes as he explained.

"That was a Gizak, Mission. They're vermin. If there is but one of them near any source of food, if it eats even the smallest morsel they become pregnant and after only a few hours give birth to a litter of at least ten more of their kind. They're disgusting and impossible to control and I won't have them running around freely on my ship! They mature within only two hours and repeat the process, its maddening that anyone would remove them from their homeworld. The only reason they exist it seems is to spread like a plague and feed predators. They're vermin, Mission and its better they die quickly, than starve slowly."  
Mission glared at Revan, pushing past him with a huff while the deposed Dark Lord sighed, catching sight of something hopping in the corner of his eye. Frowning, Revan knelt to the deck, staring at the quarter-sized Gizak infant before him, his brown eyes glazing as they blinked at the creature.  
_"What the devil is that- that thing!"_  
Bastila Shan's voice echoed in Revan's mind a moment and the former Republic General lifted the Gizak infant, tossing it into an incinerator to join its ancestors before making his way towards Bastila. The deposed Sith Lord found the Padawan sitting on her bunk, her legs drawn up and folded beneath her as she stared down at a full-grown Gizak with an expression of horror and disgust. Minutely, Revan was aware of a part of him laughing at the sight before he watched the creature burp up a small clone, the humor he found in the situation vanishing completely as the Padawan made a disgusted sound that matched the one in his own throat.

"Bastila."  
The Padawan started, turning her face from the Gizak on the floor to look up at Revan in surprise.

"What are you doing in here! I could have been changing! Get out and take this thing with you!"

Revan rose a brow at that, noticing a flush crossing the Padawan's cheeks as she considered the implications. Shrugging, Revan lifted the Gizak adult, clamping his hand around its mouth and grabbing the creature's offspring with a look of disgust.

"Sorry, Bastila. As for this thing, it's a Gizak and someone sent a crate of them to us. Canderous took care of most of them but we don't know how many got out when Mission opened the crate."

Making a mental note to make Mission's life difficult, Bastila nodded stiffly, resisting the urge to shudder at the small creature's appearance. Grateful for Revan removing the thing from her presence, Bastila allowed Revan another nod of thanks before she made her way to the fresher to clean up before her search for her mother.

"Do you want me to come along with you?"  
Revan asked as he turned to leave. Bastila froze for a moment before relaxing slighty, realizing Revan had picked up on her unease with meeting her mother she frowned, turning to study the man's appearance with a critical eye before she responded. She'd thought he was asking her if she wanted company in the fresher for a moment.

"Only if you dress appropriately. I won't have my mother thinking I am some hostage of a Sith Lord."  
The Padawan's tone was firm, though Revan could swear he saw a hint of teasing in her gray eyes. Shrugging, Revan turned to leave, calling back that he would change before he disposed of the Gizak in the well-used incinerator, catching a grunt of anger from Canderous in the cargo bay as well as a muffled Cathar curse from Juhani.

"I am going to kill that little blue schutta!"  
Canderous swore, his face twisted in silent rage as a Gizak hopped beside one of his many weapons. Revan extended a single finger on his left hand, lining it up with the creature before a blue-white tendril of lightning flickered from its gloved tip, ending on the Gizak's small, smoldering form as it was electrocuted through Revan's Force-lightning.

"She couldn't have known, but I share your sentiment. We'll let her clean these damned things up."  
Canderous grunted in annoyance, kicking the Gizak's smoking corpse and looking down at his workbench with a critical eye. A small movement drew the Mandalorian's eyes to a miniature Gizak and he growled in rage, slamming his fist down on the creature and smashing it into a puddle of greenish-yellow goo. He wouldn't kill the damned Twi'lek, but he was sure as Hell tempted to.

Juhani bristled slightly as she pushed a Gizak from her path with the toe of her brown boot. Shuddering slightly in disgust, the Cathar looked up to see Revan stalking to his quarters and hesitated a moment before following him, averting her eyes when he pulled a set of light brown robes from a cargo locker and began changing into them.  
"Juhani there might be more trouble here than these vermin. The Bounty Hunter's Guild as well as the Sith have our descriptions. On top of the Jedi and Republic searching for us and Kaera Nurr's proximity, I want you to keep an eye on the others while Bastila and I speak with her mother. Canderous should be fine, unless he goes against a very powerful Force-user but I don't think Mission can handle herself if she gets cornered alone. Zalbaar will probably want to stay on board because of the sand, can't say I envy all his fur, but be wary. You're the strongest here besides Bastila and myself and I want you to watch out for the others while I am gone."  
Juhani chanced a glance over her shoulder, flushing slightly at the view she received of Revan's well-build chest as he changed his tunic to something more practical on a desert world.

"I will do as you ask, though I would also ask that you be careful as well."

Concerned for Revan because of his seemingly high affinity for injury, Juhani voiced her concerns, turning and staring at the man as he finished dressing, a light brown, almost cream-colored set of Jedi robes covering him and a set of knee-high light brown boots and an equally light brown cloak. Recalling a picture she'd seen of him once as a Jedi, Juhani allowed herself to stray in her thoughts, wondering what it would have been like had Revan never fallen to the Darkside of the Force and had remained within the Jedi Order after the Mandalorian War. Startled from her thoughts by Bastila's arrival, Juhani saw that the Padawan was staring at Revan in surprise, her arms crossing unconsciously over the material of her skin-tight light brown unisuit that was the most practical desert-garb outfit she could find that fit her. A cream-colored cloak of off-white covered most of her figure, but Juhani took a moment to study her fellow rogue Jedi's figure appreciatively, starting slightly as she recalled her affection for her friend Belaya. Flushing in embarassment, the Cathar gave Bastila a small nod, moving past her to meditate on her confused feelings. Being a Cathar, it was only natural for Juhani to seek companionship and she silently shivered as she thought of the unabashed peace she felt in Belaya's presence. It was dangerous, but also soothing and it was something that Quatra had used in her last lesson to spur her rage.

Bastila and Revan both stared at Juhani's retreating form, uncertain what they were sensing through the Force before Revan suddenly drew the connection and turned his eyes to Bastila's outfit, eyeing her skin-tight ensemble with a frown. He hadn't had much time to speak personally with Juhani and while he had no qualms with her choice of partners, he felt an irrational possessiveness of Bastila. Rolling his eyes at his own thoughts, Revan pushed it aside, blaming it on not having been with a woman since Sarna on Taris. It had been nearly two months and while he had superb control, he was still a man and still appreciated feminine beauty.

"Maybe you should pick something less... revealing if you're going to be speaking with your mother?"  
Revan asked in a dry tone, unable to keep the smirk off his face as the Padawan flushed brightly, her gray eyes looking like two smoldering storm clouds before she visibly centered herself, calming her reaction to Revan's unexpected teasing. Taking in a shaky breath, Bastila released it calmly and unconsciously pulled the edges of her cloak around her figure, obscuring Revan's blatant perusal of her body. The flash of disappointment in Revan's eyes startled Bastila and she shivered slightly as he leaned in closer to her, the deposed SIth Lord's scent strong and masculine, and not at all unpleasant as he stared into her eyes with a curious expression.

"Your choice."  
Revan muttered, deciding he'd had enough fun and that anymore teasing would lead only to a distraction of this thought processes. Stepping past Bastila, Revan waited until she turned to gesture for her to proceed him, fighting to keep his eyes from falling onto her outline as she pulled the cloak around her and stepped past him with a huff of annoyance.

"It is none of your concern what I wear!"  
Bastila spat, her eyes dropping to the deck in front of her and an irrational urge to smile playing under her schooled features before she fought it off. Shivering slightly as she felt Revan's eyes travel down her back to rest on other attributes of her figure, Bastila turned, glaring at the man as he looked back into her face with a half-smile, devoid of the cruelty his smirks normally held. The smile caused her protest to die in her throat and Bastila merely blinked at the man before turning around slowly, moving from the _Ebon Hawk _to Tatooine's dry and oppressive heat. Revan followed promptly, matching Bastila's pace and coming to stand beside her as he raised a gloved hand to his brow, narrowing his eyes as he peered across the bright spaceport to a nearby set of doors leading to Anchorhead's streets. He really hated Tatooine, but at least there was something pleasant to look at this time around.

Author's Note: Trying to deepen the connection between Revan and Bastila and work a way around his... Darksided...ness... Also wanted to start toying around with the Revan/Bastila interaction and a nice healthy dose of UST, gotta love that UST. Hope its gradual enough, I'm trying not to rush his change in character or their relationship. I also added a bit of a number crunch for the Mandalorian and Jedi Civil Wars. Galaxy-spanning wars would not operate in small numbers so I figured I'd add to the nice little mess I've written.


	24. Chapter 23: Monsters

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"That thing is the most vile and horrendous abomination that I have ever lain eyes upon. It reeks of darkness... it smells of blood and fire and it serves no purpose beyond murder, regardless of it being your... creation- __**stop laughing Revan it is not funny!**__ If you wish to defeat the True Sith merely set that abomination upon them, surely they would fall on their own blades than listen to its disgusting voice!"  
Darth Malak to Darth Revan, shortly after being referred to as an "Organic Meatbag"_

Chapter 23: Monsters

Helena Shan knew immediately that the man beside her daughter was trouble. Despite his calm, even pleasant demeanor as he passed through the doors of the cantina, she knew as soon as she met his eyes what he was. His eyes were not the eyes of what the galaxy believed a Jedi was, neither were they the eyes of a wholly good man, they were the eyes of a killer and she frowned in disapproval as she looked between the man and her only child. He could hide behind a cultured accent and Jedi garb all he liked but she knew those eyes, knew he was a Mandalorian before he even opened his mouth. Why a Mandalorian would be with her daughter, she did not know, though she frowned at the implications. She was no stranger to the holonet and she had seen the reports of her daughter, had carefully followed her daughter's career as closely as she could before she had simply vanished two months prior on Taris. The Jedi had said nothing, never returned her requests to speak with her daughter and her husband had been missing for just as long. Sighing, the ailing woman tried to keep the sneer from her face as she eyed Revan. He wasn't good enough for her daughter, of that she was certain. Moving casually towards the pair, Helena made a show of inspecting her daughter's appearance, a frown of disapproval on her features before she met her daughter's eyes. Knowing as soon as she laid eyes on her daughter that she was indeed her daughter, Helena waited as the pair moved towards her, her automatic disapproval of Revan easing slightly when she saw his eyes searching silently for threats as he used himself as a human shield between her daughter and the more threatening-looking individuals within the bar. At least the man was sharp, it gave her some faith in her daughter's choice of traveling companions, if not a bit of respect.

"Bastila? Is that you?"

Bastila's gray eyes connected with the pale blue of her mother's and she frowned as she took in the aging woman before her. Where in her mind she saw a young woman, healthy and intimidating, she now saw a frail, pale wraith, a simple shadow of what the woman had been. Her once brown hair was a dark gray and her skin hung from her bones as if she were hollowed out inside. Resisting the urge to shudder at the feelings the contrasting images invoked within her, Bastila silently searched for her father, certain she would recognize him instantly. When she saw and felt nothing, Bastila turned back to her mother, a worried frown causing her brow to furrow slightly, though she kept it from forming on her lips.

"I am here, mother... or don't you recognize me?"  
Bitterness, a feeling she was intimately familiar with welled within her as she gazed at the frail woman before her. A part of her was concerned at her mother's appearance, though the larger part of her consciousness remembered clearly the reason she had not seen the woman for nearly two decades. The reason she had not been allowed to live a peaceful life with a loving father and not as some rogue Jedi, ostracized for allowing herself to feel compassion for her enemy. The look that crossed her mother's features was pained disbelief and Bastila allowed a small, vicious part of her heart to feel satisfied at the old woman's distress. A hand on her shoulder caused her to visibly start and she turned her eyes from her mother's distressed face to Revan's, the deposed Sith Lord's mouth was set in a thin line and his eyes were staring at her with a ghost of concerned curiosity. It took the rogue Padawan a moment to gather her thoughts, shocked that a man like Revan would show concern for her relationship with her mother. A voice in her head whispered uncertainty and she glared at the man, shaking off his reassuring grasp on her shoulder. She would not allow him to manipulate her, there was no reason Revan would care what she and her mother thought of one another.

"I did not ask you to be here, you insisted!"  
Bastila snapped, glaring at the man before she turned back to her mother, fully prepared to get the information she required of her father's whereabouts before she felt something cold and dark flicker on the edge of her senses, in the back of her mind where the Force connected her thoughts to Revan's. Straightening his robes as he removed his hand from Bastila's shoulder, Revan turned back to the Padawan's mother, his face betraying no emotion as he stared at the woman, though he was reminded briefly of how frail his Master Kreia had appeared the last time he'd seen her. Helena Shan's dull blue eyes had almost resembled the damaged eyes of his former Master and Revan had felt a moment's concern for the clearly unhealthy woman before he pushed the feeling aside. It was no business of his if Bastila wanted to argue with her mother, he had only thought it more productive to be civil.

"How do you expect me to recognize you when I haven't had so much of a picture of you since you were a little girl!?"  
Helena's voice was strained, though a fire glimmered in her azure eyes and Revan rose a brow sightly in respect of the woman. She wouldn't take Bastila's judgement lying down. Stepping back, Revan casually scanned the crowded bar, searching the corners of the establishment for any possible threats or a very unwelcome Jedi Knight or Republic Commander. Seeing no one was interested in the drama playing between mother and daughter, Revan stepped away from Bastila, having no interest in attracting more of her ire as he ordered a drink from the barkeeper and swallowed it back in one gulp before ordering another and doing the same to it. Leaning back on a bar stool, Revan took in a calming breath, allowing the burn of the alcohol in his throat to occupy his mouth. He needed the distraction, otherwise he might say something to lose the Padawan's tentative trust in him and that would be unfortunate.

"I see you're keeping fine company."  
Helena shot, earning a dark look from Revan as he kept himself from responding physically to the woman's mocking sarcasm. Ordering another drink, Revan nursed the alcohol and made a conscious effort to stay out of the conversation.

"This has nothing to do with me, Mrs. Shan."  
Revan replied with forced politeness. Bastila intervened before her mother fell under Revan's further anger and touched the old woman's shoulder carefully, suddenly irrationally afraid she might accidentally push the woman over. Helena sighed as she turned her attention from her daughter's companion to Bastila, her heart pained slightly as she looked into eyes so similar to her husband's.  
"Enough, mother. Now, why have you been searching for me and where- where is father?"  
Revan absently tossed back another drink, his eyes glancing in Bastila's general direction, though he did not turn his head.

"Bastila... there- there's been an accident and- and he's dead, Bastila. He was searching some ruins in the desert to find- to find a cure for me and he- he was killed by a Krayt Dragon..."  
As Bastila began a vicious retort to her mother after hearing the facts about her father's death, Revan's eyes widened in disbelief. A flash of pain, so acute it nearly caused Revan to drop his drink flashed through the bond and the deposed Sith Lord sneered in disgust, a look of absolute intolerance crossing his face as he slammed back his drink and dropped a handful of credits on the counter. He was not some weakling who's emotions limited his greatness, he was not some simpering, sniveling coward, holding to the edges of someone's cloak and begging for scraps, he was a Dark Lord, he was **the** Dark Lord of the Sith and accepting anything besides absolute servitude and deference from others was intolerable. Pride and arrogance warring with the emotions coming from Bastila caused the deposed Sith Lord to stalk away angrily from the bar, his hand clenching into tight fists as he listened to Bastila and Helena argue.

_"Honor."_

Revan closed his eyes, swallowing back the lump that had formed in his throat as he realized with dread that he was responsible for Bastila's father's death. Ridiculous as it sounded, he had been the one to entice the Krayt Dragon to the cave hiding the Starmap and Revan knew the Starmap contained the only ruins on Tatooine. Ruins Bastila's father had been investigating in the hopes of finding something valuable enough to find a cure for his wife, Bastila's mother. Taking in a breath shakily, Revan forced a calm over himself as he listened to the mother and daughter argue, their words filled with bitterness and anger that covered a pain they both felt at Bastila's father's passing.

"I will find your husband's holocron."  
Revan stated in a voice that left no room for argument. Bastila and Helena visibly started at his interruption, both having forgot Revan in their arguments and grief. Bastila's eyes were filled with pain, though a flicker of surprise and suspicion were evident and Helena's stared at him with a curious light, though a faint hint of respect was shining in her dulled blue eyes. Revan clenched his teeth together, not appreciating the look.

"The last time I was on Tatooine... I chased a Krayt Dragon to a cave to the south-east of Anchorhead. I... am likely responsible for its presence there and it is only fitting that I be the one to remedy the situation... I am sorry for your loss..."  
Revan surprised himself by the sincerity in his voice while Bastila gave a startled gasp, her eyes filling with shocked anger. Helena closed her eyes for a moment, drawing in a calming breath before she let it out in a heavy sigh, her eyes opening to focus on Revan with a mixture of pained acceptance and resolve.  
"I- I would appreciate recovering my husband's body if it is possible... and I don't, I can't blame you for the Krayt Dragon's presence there. My- my husband knew of the dangers but he still went... I- I can only hope to see him at peace before my time comes."  
Revan nodded slowly, his face expressionless as he turned slowly from Helena, not even making eye contact with Bastila as he turned to leave. Bastila stared after Revan, anger and sorrow burning within her, though she turned to her mother, gazing into the woman's face as if she were a stranger before following Revan. Helena moved to sit at a table, heavily dropping her weight to the chair as she brought her hands to her face, covering her eyes as she allowed herself to weep for her husband and her daughter. She didn't have any tears for herself, nor did she care, but seeing what had become of her daughter in the Jedi's care pained her. She'd thought the rumors of Jedi being emotionless were lies, but her daughter had never been so cold to her before, never been so cold to anyone. Taking in a shuddering breath, Helena was surprised to feel a hand brush against hers and peered up into her daughter's concerned features, the anger that had been present moments before replaced with grief.  
"I- I think I shall stay here, mother. We- we've much to talk about."  
Helena nodded numbly, moving aside to allow her daughter to sit next to her. Pushing aside her pride, Helena reached out, pulling Bastila to her in a tight hug, ignoring how tense her daughter was as she lowered her face to her shoulder, shuddering in silent tears as she held to the last of her family, the last thing she had of her husband. Bastila slowly allowed herself to relax in her mother's grasp, her hands raising awkwardly to return the gesture as she closed her eyes and mirrored her mother's gesture. She'd been angry, resentful moments before but the shock of Revan's confession had made her see the grief in her mother and the bond she shared with Revan had forced her to look upon her mother through his eyes. With obvious concern, Bastila noticed how thin her mother's frame felt and how cool her skin was, despite Tatooine's heat. She had followed Revan outside of the bar before the man had turned to her, staring into her eyes and allowing the bond between them to say all he'd needed to.

_"Your mother needs you, and you need her."_

There had been a feeling of such self-disgust accompanying that telepathic message that Bastila had staggered away from Revan, her emotions warring within her as she tried to make sense of them all. She hated Revan, but she respected him. She deplored what he had done, but she could understand it and she had placed the blame for her father's death on her mother when she felt Revan take the blame upon himself. The emotion that had gone through Revan's mind at this conclusion was one of resignation and she was terrified for him for a moment, feeling the familiar crawl of her skin when he reflected too long on his past deeds and she moved to support her mother, support the woman her father had chosen to love. Closing her eyes, Bastila held her mother in silence, allowing her touch to say all that needed to be said. They had much to talk about, but at that moment, words were not needed. That moment, they both just needed comfort from someone who understood their pain and shared it.

Revan stood outside of the cantina, his eyes dry and filled with hatred. The bond was blocked, a cool tendril of ice cutting off the Padawan's grief and thoughts. Taking in a deep breath, Revan felt a flickering presence in the Force that made him roll his eyes in annoyance.

_"Just what I bloody needed."_

Revan muttered to himself, pulling his hood over his head and disguising his presence in the Force as best he could. Bastila was making no such effort and Revan closed his eyes in silent rage before pushing off his shielding and allowing the Jedi moving across the street several dozen meters before him to sense his presence. Bastila needed time with her mother, not Kaera Nurr's questions. Overpowering Bastila's presence, Revan moved forward with a stony expression, his eyes locking with two startled blue pools as he approached. Kaera Nurr visibly paled, though she quickly regained her center and calmly lowered her hand to the single lightsaber at her belt, not pulling the weapon, but prepared to defend herself.

"I have a proposition for you."  
Revan stated slowly. The Jedi Knight lifted her chin stubbornly, gazing into Revan's features with contempt as she looked around for any hidden threats or allies. Revan merely stared into her eyes, un-nervingly still as he waited, the only movements from him the steady rise and fall of his chest.

"And I have one for you, Revan."  
Kaera stated, carefully removing a datapad from her cloak. Revan took the datapad carefully, keeping his senses on alert as he looked down at the information before him, his brow rising in slight surprise at the name on the pad.

"Griff Vao?"  
Kaera's expression remained stony, though she nodded stiffly to Revan's question. Glad that Carth was still back with the ship, Kaera pulled another datapad from her cloak, allowing Revan a view of the Czerka Corporation hunting license needed to use the gates leading to and from the Dune Sea.

"I've been assigned the task of finding either him or his remains and word has it he was captured by Tusken Raiders a few days ago. As the company doesn't want anyone to think they don't care for their employees, I've been given special permission to investigate. I was about to see an Ithorian about a translator droid, if you show me where the Starmap on this world is and promise me you won't assault me, I think we can arrange a truce."  
Revan considered his options before nodding slowly. If Mission had a brother on Tatooine that was in danger, he owed it to her to bring him back, or his remains, just as he owed it to Bastila and her mother and while he found his company somewhat lacking, Revan decided there were worse things to have backing you up besides a Jedi.

"Agreed, we will remain on neutral terms until we leave this world. I won't attack you or your allies so long as they don't attack me. I will give you the Starmap and aid you in finding Griff Vao if you allow me to recover some remains in the cave the Starmap is hidden in. They are of no concern to you and it is strictly a personal errand concerning my honor that I wish to fulfill. Do we have an accord?"  
Revan held out his hand, waiting for Kaera to accept. The Jedi eyed his hand with distaste before she nodded reluctantly and accepted the gesture, trying not to shudder as she shook his hand. Revan did not release her hand and Kaera's eyes snapped to his, seeing that he was looking to his left through his peripherals, a frown on his face. From where Kaera had come, three figures in robes of black and gray walked assuredly towards the cantina, their faces hidden beneath black masks that covered their mouths and noses. Revan's hand tightened on Kaera's a moment in warning before he slowly released her hand and lowered his hand to his lightsaber, his tongue licking the dryness from his lips on an impulse as he turned and began moving slowly, trying to look as casual as possible to keep from attracting the Dark Jedi's attention. None of the Sith were on guard for the attack and Revan's steps increased in speed until he saw one of the Dark Jedi stiffen. Instinctively, Revan moved to his right, pushing Kaera against a wall before he used the side of the building to vault himself to his left, sliding along the ground as he tossed his lightsaber towards the alerted Dark Jedi.

The Dark Jedi had turned and fired a blaster pistol, the blasterbolt passing through the spot Revan and Kaera had been moments before the red blade of Revan's lightsaber imbedded itself in the Sith's chest. The Sith dropped to his knees, his blaster falling from his fingers as Revan used the Force to call his weapon back to his hand.

The remaining two Dark Jedi looked to one another as their comrade dropped, both coming to a silent agreement as they split apart, one going for Revan and the other for Kaera. Kaera thumbed the switch to her lightsaber, a blue beam sliding fluidly to intercept a violet and she spun, using the Sith's charge to throw him off balance as she used a downward slash to wound the Sith. The Sith cried out in pain, glaring through bright hazel eyes at the Jedi Knight before he struck forth, his movements slowed from his wounds but his fury adding to their strength. Kaera felt the impacts of the Sith's blows traveling up her arms and straining the hilt of her saber in her hand and she tightened her grasp, her eyes widening as the Sith unleashed a torrent of Force-lightning towards her that she was forced to block with her saber. The Sith advanced on her, pressing his advantage as he aimed his saber for the Jedi's heart. Kaera dodged back, narrowly avoiding the deadly violet blade and she paid for trying to parry the counterstrike from the Sith by receiving a painful dose of Force-lightning. The Sith advanced triumphantly on the weakened Jedi, his head snapping to the side in shock as he saw what Revan was doing to his comrade.

Revan had recovered his weapon a split second before the Sith assaulted him with a saberstaff, the two-bladed lightsaber giving the Sith attacking him the advantage in attack speed as she twisted her wrists and body in an impressive display of agility and stamina to strike at Revan with the two deadly red blades. Revan's own red blade intercepted the first seven strikes hastily, his form sloppy from lack of use against Jedi. It took only a moment for his intuition and a life-time of training to catch up with him and Revan uncoiled his left hand from his saber, an open palm the only warning as he sent out a powerful Force-push that knocked the Dark Jedi's assault away from him. The Dark Jedi twisted into a reverse somersault, rolling on the ground and ending up on her feet as she cursed . Revan took advantage of the opening, rushing forward and raining down furious blows with his lightsaber as he adopted a Juyo stance. While incomplete and likely to remain so, Juyo was a fighting style that used both physical power and Force strength to the advantage of its user. It was because of the complexities of battle and emotions that the Jedi Order never finish the style. It required the Jedi to walk a fine line between the light and dark and channel their emotions into the fight, leading them to a more violent conclusion. Jedi did not draw their weapons to kill and so it remained unfinished, an incomplete art in how to use the saber to kill. Revan had made his own variant of the fighting style, using its complex motions to strike the Dark Jedi's defenses with his blade more times than would have been necessary. More often called a state of mind than a fighting style, Juyo required the user to give themselves over to their impulses and not their training. Considering Revan's strength in the Force and his lack of conflict in regards to the Darkside of the Force, it penetrated the Dark Jedi's defenses in two seconds flat, turning her into nothing more than body parts.

Slowly, Revan turned his face to stare at the last remaining Dark Jedi as he blasted Kaera with another Force-lightning assault. The Dark Jedi pressed his advantage, Forcing Kaera to fend off both the lightning and his blade, causing a gap in Kaera's defenses. Kaera's Ataru form, based more on acrobatic moves to overwhelm defenses than melee abilities was similar to the style the Dark Jedi smoldering at Revan's feet had used, though she had enough sense to throw some defensive Soresu in her style as the heat of Tatooine as well as her injuries from the Dark Jedi's Force-lightning had limited her abilities. The Dark Jedi fighting Kaera used a powerful variant of Djem-So and Makashi, using his superior physical strength in his attacks against Kaera and forcing the Jedi into a defensive. Makashi, likely a remnant of early Jedi training against a Master of the lightsaber was being used intermittently with his powerful strikes against Kaera, probing for weaknesses in her form to get past her defenses with his violet blade. Revan noticed the Dark Jedi turn to look at him before he raised his hand outward, sending a blast of Force-lightning at the Dark Jedi and causing him to go from aggressor to defender as he blocked the assault with his saber. Kaera recovered quickly, twisting her blue blade into a flurry of light as she cut into the distracted Sith, his saber only stopping three of her strikes before she grazed his shoulder and then his ankle. The Sith shouted in pain, dropping under his own weight and Kaera sidestepped his clumsy strike towards her, her blade humming as it adjusted slightly, going perfectly vertical with the ground for a split-second before she used a Cho-mai disabling move to remove the Sith's weapon-hand. Kaera stood over the wounded Sith, her saber lowering to his throat as she stared down at him impassively, waiting for the Sith to chose whether to yield or die. A pinpoint of blue-white energy cut the courtesy short and the Sith was thrown against the wall behind him, his body writhing as tendrils of energy snaked around him. Foam came from the Sith's mouth as his eyes rolled back into his head and the sickening smell of burnt flesh and cloth rose from him as the Force-lightning assault ceased. The Sith dropped to the ground in a heap before rising unnaturally, the only force keeping him upright the Force-grip Revan had on his throat as he rose slowly against the wall, his feet dangling a foot from the ground as he feebly kicked and clawed at his throat with his remaining hand and his stump of a weapon-hand.

"Why are you here?"  
Revan asked, ignoring the look of shock and fear on Kaera's face. The Jedi opened her mouth to protest the barbaric display before the Sith's voice, cultured and telling of his Core world roots though weak and raw from his condition broke through her mind.

"L-Lord Mala- Malak was most- most displeased when he learned you ha- had escaped Taris with your life. H- he has offered a g- great reward for wh- whoever captures you and your friends."  
Revan's left hand, pointed towards the Sith with his index finger and his thumb held in a pinching gesture, flicked to the side and the Dark Jedi convulsed once before he dropped bonelessly to the ground, his pain ending with his life as Revan turned to Kaera, his brown eyes gleaming golden briefly in Tatooine's twin sins before they dulled, vibrant brown staring at her in silent challenge. Kaera tensed, her weapon still active and in her hand and mirroring Revan's active red blade. Jedi and former Jedi stared at one another before Revan turned his head and flicked off his saber, the approach of two women, one young and the other aged, worn and sickly drawing Kaera's attention from his face.

"What in the name of the Force is going on here!"  
Bastila struggled to keep from raising her voice, the question a soft hiss as she looked between Kaera and Revan with a look of apprehension before she turned her eyes down to the three Dark Jedi corpses.

"Malak is trying to track us. He's not a genius, but he's not a fool either and he is likely keeping a Sith presence on every world where the Starmaps are located."  
Bastila, having learned of the Starmaps and the Star Forge from Revan on their trip from Nar Shaddaa to Tatooine sighed heavily, her body tensing for only a moment as her mother came up beside her and looked down on the bodies of the Sith. Unreadable blue eyes scanned the Dark Jedi corpses before turning in silent question to Revan's and the former Dark Lord felt the urge to shift uncomfortably, hiding the gesture by replacing his weapon to his belt and kneeling down beside the Sith he had just brutally executed. Helena Shan's eyes stared at Revan for a moment, knowing her first impression of the man was correct and she fought down the shudder that worked its way up her spine, shivering slightly instead.

"Bastila..."  
Helena saw her daughter tense as she turned her attention to the young woman, only a little older than her. The Talravin-born matriarch of the Shan family saw a painfully familiar expression cross her daughter's young features, a look her father got when he tried to hide a doctor appointment he'd made for her without her knowledge until the last moment. Pushing aside the pain in her chest as well as the pain of the disease ravaging her body, Helena turned her eyes back to Revan, seeing the man collect a datapad from the Sith's corpse as she listened to her daughter greet the other young woman in a shaky voice.

"K- Kaera. It- it is good to see you well..."  
Bastila grimaced slightly at her weak greeting, seeing a challenging gleam in Kaera's blue eyes before the Jedi looked past her to her mother and pressed her lips tightly together, fighting back her emotions and keeping civil.

"Bastila. I see you have not been treated poorly since your disappearance."  
Bastila tensed, feeling her mother's eyes on her and she fought to keep a calm expression as she stared into Kaera's face, seeing the stubborn set of the older Jedi's shoulders. A blur of a crude missile moved in the corner of her eyes and Bastila saw Kaera reach out and catch the datapad Revan had thrown at her effortlessly, her eyes flickering to the deposed Dark Lord before looking down at the datapad.

"It's the same as the one Mira showed us on Nar Shaddaa. The Sith have Helena's name and they were likely coming for her as a means of finding you."  
Revan's voice was calm, lacking of emotion and Bastila felt strangely grateful at its steady, strong rhythm. Revan's voice was as calmly assured as it always was and she knew he was planning a solution. Kaera's eyes flickered with concern before the anger dimmed and she looked up, focusing on Bastila's gray eyes for a moment before she nodded subtly. Bastila returned the gesture, promising an explanation in a safer and less public area while Revan did a wonderful impression of a mugger, looting the Sith corpses of their weapons and credits as well as several trinkets that Bastila did not take the time to identify.  
"It looks like they were operating by themselves. Triumvate markings, lower class assassins. They were likely only here to retrieve Helena or to observe and report to their superiors. We're going to have to work quickly, Kaera, if we don't want to deal with more Sith."  
Kaera glanced between Bastila and Revan before nodding her agreement, her features relaxing slightly as she placed the datapad in a pouch, making a mental note to report it as well as Revan's and Bastila's presence to the Council. The word Triumvate echoed briefly in her mind and she frowned, mentally adding the word to her yet to be written mission report.

"What is going on here, what do you mean they were coming for me?"  
Helena asked weakly, her voice strained from her sickness and exhaustion. Revan glanced at Bastila and then to Kaera, making a decision about what needed to be done.

"They were here for your daughter, Mrs. Shan. If Kaera would be so kind as to direct you and Bastila to her ship, the Jedi Order will take you into productive custody and arrange for transport to Coruscant. Is that agreeable, to you?"  
Revan looked to Kaera and held the Jedi Knight's gaze for several seconds before the Jedi's shoulders slumped in defeat and she agreed.

"Here is where the transport is docked, Bastila. I'll comm Carth and let him know you and your mother are coming."  
Helena had caught the gesture and frowned at the strange interplay between the three supposed Jedi before her before reluctantly agreeing to go with her daughter to Carth and Kaera's transport. Bastila cast an uncertain look over her shoulder as she led her mother to the spaceport, still a bit numb from Revan's admission to her and her mother over his contribution to her father's death though she could not really blame him for the act. While there was anger, Bastila felt more sad than anything and she knew Revan had not placed the Krayt Dragon in the cave with the Starmap specifically to kill her father. She also knew he felt strongly responsible for the incident and rightly so, though the guilt and anger Revan felt over the situation gave her pause, causing her to wonder if it was because of their bond that he felt those things or because he honestly felt remorse.

Kaera commed Carth and spent nearly half an hour talking the Republic Commander down from coming after her to kill Revan personally. Revan spent most of the time reading a datapad one of the Sith had been carrying, the pad held in his right hand as his left hand's fingers absently drummed on the table in the Czerka Corporation headquarters as they disposed of the Sith bodies and filed the necessary paperwork for Revan to accompany Kaera out of the settlement.

"For the last time, Carth. I am fine, Bastila is on her way and you are to take care of her mother. We'll discuss this later but say nothing of our mission or our purpose here to her and do not antagonize or question Bastila when she is there, that is an order!"  
Flinching slightly at the dead silence that followed her order, Kaera pushed down the guilt she felt. Carth was leaving her no choice and she didn't want Helena's condition to worsen because the Telosian Commander could not keep his mouth shut. She had to pull rank on him. A mumbled obscenity came across the comm and Revan glanced up from the datapad he was reading to comment in an absent tone.

"Carth, Helena Shan is very ill. If she were to learn of who I am it might lead her to unnecessary stress that could lead to her condition worsening. I'm sure Bastila would be very upset over the issue and neither of us can risk her being volatile. Her father's death is placing great strain on her and if her mother was to follow so soon after she learned of her father's death, she would be extremely susceptible to the call of the darkside. I've no interest in seeing her fall, neither do you. Leave it at that."  
Carth glared at the communications console before him, hearing the tone of the ship's security systems sound as it was approached by two women. Seeing the naked concern on Bastila's face and the frail, sickly appearance of her mother, Carth swallowed back the curse he wanted to throw in Revan's face, studying the two women's features on the small security screen before he sighed heavily, lowering the transport's ramp and checking his weapons as he moved to click off the comms.

"This isn't over. I'll play along... for now, but I can't ignore this forever."  
Having made some peace with Revan on Dantooine after shooting the man, Carth's guilt at the action had turned back to anger when the Sith Lord had disappeared with the _Ebon Hawk_ and Bastila. More concerned for the repercussions of Bastila's Battle Meditation being absent from the front lines than the possibility of her turning, Carth was forced to agree with Revan. If the rogue Padawan fell to the darkside and joined Malak, the Sith would be unstoppable and while Revan was an enemy, the man's nature and personality made it difficult to classify who's enemy Revan really was and whether the deposed Sith Lord could be used against Malak and his Sith or against the Republic and Jedi. Putting on a neutral expression, Carth felt a bit of concern flash across his features as he greeted Bastila and Helena, offering a neutral nod to the Padawan and holding her gaze for a moment before turning to Helena and offering her the use of the ship's facilities. Pulling Bastila aside, Carth quietly told the Padawan he agreed to keep quiet about Revan and their mission on Tatooine for her mother's sake, which the Padawan happily and gratefully accepted, a tired and pained expression on her features as she followed her mother to the extra quarters on the transport.

Revan continued reading the datapad for several minutes after Carth had broken the communications link, his attention focused on the files scrolling across the small screen before him before he caught the identity of the Sith Lord in charge of the assassins.

_"Nihilus..."  
_Had Kreia still been alive or in power amongst the Sith Triumvate that represented the Lords of Malachor, her alias, Traya, would have been on the documents and Revan felt a pang in his chest at the thought of Kreia's likely demise with Malak's rise to power. The pain felt strangely similar to what had crossed the bond when Bastila had learned of her father's death and Revan frowned, the datapad sparking as it was crushed in his tightening grasp. Smoke came from the ruined device and Revan closed his eyes, making sure to keep his thoughts shielded from Bastila as he let out a slow breath, the hiss of his sigh drawing Kaera's attention from the datapad to his face.

"Was that really necessary?"  
The Jedi asked cooly, her blue eyes flickering as they swept Revan's handsome features. The deposed Sith Lord's eyes were closed and a muscle twitched along his jaw as his lips formed a thin line, his breathing at the moment similar to the state a Jedi entered before they entered a meditative trance. Slowly, Revan's eyes opened and locked with her's and Kaera fought down the unease she felt at the pools of golden fire, the gleam hinting at a deep rage that Revan was forcing down with visible effort. Nihilus had likely allied with Sion to overthrow Kreia and Revan found it hard to keep from verbally shouting at the room. A maddeningly primal rage burned in his mind, savage and raving in its fury as it reflected in his eyes and Revan took in another steadying breath, feeling the bond he shared with Bastila in the back of his mind, shielded from his anger. Strangely, the bond calmed him somewhat and Revan was able to regain his senses as he calmly set the destroyed pad on the table, removing the small pad's memory storage core before he stood and turned his attention fully to Kaera.

"There should be a junk shop or a droid shop we can go to around here. We'll look for an untraceable pad that we can leave behind. I don't fancy putting this thing on a traceable source. Maybe that Ithorian you were looking for will have one."  
Kaera nodded her agreement, releasing the tension from her body in a slow, quiet breath as she stood, looking to the Czerka secretary at the office's reception area.

"We'll be back in an hour or two to check on the documents."  
The secretary nodded absently, studying the console before her distractedly as she waved them off and passed on a standard Czerka farewell complete with company endorsements. Kaera collected the destroyed pad from the table, setting it in a waste disposal bin before following Revan from the Czerka office and towards a droid shop on the edge of Anchorhead. The twin suns of Tatooine were still high in the blue-gray sky above and Kaera shifted uncomfortably, wondering why she had opted to wear her cloak as she followed Revan through the dank, crowded streets. A few beggars approached them but Kaera was forced to pass them by as Revan ignored them, not even bothering to look at them as he passed. Angry at the man's coldness, Kaera apologized to the beggars as she followed Revan, having to sprint after him several times to catch up.  
"Would it have been so difficult of you to give them a moment of your time?"  
Kaera asked acidly, her voice filled with loathing and annoyance as she glared at Revan. Revan glanced at her for a moment, his face devoid of emotions and his eyes seeming to look right through her. Kaera stifled the fear she felt at his expression and held his blank eyes for a moment before he turned to look around the droid shop. Revan's face was expressionless as he looked along the racks and tables lining the shop, a brief nod of greeting was passed to the Ithorian shopkeeper before Kaera noticed Revan tense, his blank features turning at first curious and slightly wary before an incredulous expression flashed across his face. Kaera followed Revan's gaze to a rust-colored humanoid-shaped droid sitting in a distant corner of the droid shop, its red-orange eyes focusing on them as Revan approached, his brown eyes narrow and filled with what Kaera could only describe as shocked joy.

"Statement: Greetings, humanoid meatbag. I am HK-47 trained in translation protocol and assassination- erm, combat. Would you be interested in purchasing this unit from the deficient Yuka Laka? I am certain my more than competent abilities would suit you well. Upon purchase my restraining bolt will be removed and we can engage in some unadulterated killing if you wish, potential purchaser."  
Revan's lips twitched as his eyes studied the droid with more familiarity than Kaera had expected.

"I think we can come to an arrangement... old friend."  
The droid seemed as surprised as Kaera at the statement and both stared at Revan a moment before the deposed Sith Lord moved to the Ithorian shopkeeper to negotiate a price for HK-47 as well as an untraceable datapad. The shopkeeper was all to eager to rid himself of the troublesome droid and had the means to find an untraceable datapad, if Revan and Kaera were willing to wait for a few days. Revan paid for HK and smirked as the Ithorian removed the droid's restraining bolt, the droid's photoreceptors glowing red a moment as it looked down in disdain at its former owner.

"Threat: Watch what you are doing you talentless meatbag. This unit has suffered enough at your incompetent hands and primitive maintenance skills. One word from my new Master and I would be more than glad to kill you. Request: Can I kill him now, Master... May I crush his neck, just a little? It has been a long-time fantasy of mine."  
Kaera stared at the droid in horror, her eyes turning to Revan as he seemed to seriously consider the sadistic droid's request. The Jedi lowered her hand to her lightsaber, her eyes catching the droid's head turning to her at the gesture and she kept her hand on her weapon, prepared to destroy the monstrosity if it came to that. Luckily, Revan intervened before Jedi and assassination droid could come to blows.

"Maybe later, HK. We'll need your abilities to translate the language of the Sandpeople."  
Revan stated absently, completely serious as he stepped outside of the shop. Kaera stood still, staring at the droid as it turned its red eyes from her to Yuka Laka.

"Do you hear that, meatbag! I'll be back!"  
The Ithorian looked both afraid and confused and Kaera sighed, waiting for the droid to leave before apologizing for her companion and following Revan and the droid outside. The Jedi Knight was far from comforted when she learned that the droid spoke Tusken and glanced at the seven foot tall assassin droid with wary resignation. To defeat the likes of Darth Malak and his Sith it would be necessary to ally with unsavory types from time to time. The droid and his Master were two such examples.


	25. Chapter 24: A Shadow of His Former Self

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"Direct confrontation in battle is the hallmark of a warrior, we must always be prepared to withstand a brutal assault by a superior foe, whether their superiority be in strength or firepower or numbers or skill. It is through resolve that we overcome their advantage, that we turn the tables on them and become victor instead of victim... Though... there is something to be said of subtlety... Humph, there is also something to be said of a big gun and lots of explosions. At any rate it makes life interesting to fight someone face to face, don't you think?"_

_Darth Revan to HK-47 shortly after the assassination of Senator Yuanis of the Echani_

Chapter 24: A Shadow of His Former Self

Smoke rose slowly from a distant point in the desert and one figure moved quickly along the sand-dunes, a second across his shoulders as he stalked across the treacherous sand and scaled the edge of a high dune, tendrils of sand falling ever towards the abyss, swallowed by the shadows Tatooine's twin suns cast as they set in the distant horizon. Dust and sand rose in the air, a light wind creating a vortex of sand that obscured the retreating figure. Stopping, the figure turned, raising his arm and the pistol in his hands fired repetitively and with deadly precision, killing two Tusken Raiders as they charged headlong after him. Slipping and losing his footing, the figure and his burden rolled down the edge of the sand dune as a Tusken took a shot at them and Revan sneered to himself at the awkwardness of his burden, allowing the unconscious Jedi to continue her descent towards the ravine between the dunes while he used the Force to physically stop his descent and rolled into a crouch, taking careful aim with his modified pistol and squeezed off a single shot that struck the Tusken firing at him between the eyes.  
Precisely four point two kilometers away, the Assassin Protocol Droid HK-47 marched steadily through the sand, one rust-colored hand clasped firmly on the arm of Griff Vao, practically dragging the Twi'lek on an efficient and sound trajectory towards the Meatbag settlement of Anchorhead. The Tusken Raiders within the village had chosen to respond to their presence with threats of violence, something the droid had taken as a literal threat to his new Master's life. Following protocol with glee, HK-47 had proceeded to annihilate precisely eighty-three percent of the Tusken Enclave's inhabitants before Master had ordered him to secure the Meatbag Griff Vao and take him back to Anchorhead unharmed. HK, disappointed to leave the slaughter he had just lain upon the Sandpeople had only protested for a moment before he found the concept of evading enraged Tusken Meatbags with the added burden of a pathetic and cowering Meatbag an intriguing challenge. Man-handling the fragile Twi'lek Meatbag was an added bonus and the Hunter-Killer droid took extra pleasure in the darkened bruises on the Twi'lek's body that he was responsible for.

Madness was a part of life, Revan had mused once upon a time. The chaos, the anarchy of the free will of each individual sentient being was all a simple madness, a cacophony of voices screaming at one another for dominance where only the strongest, the most tenacious of individuals dominated the others. The voices were there to be dominated, not reasoned with. Reasoning with something, seeking a camaraderie was to accept that the being was an equal. Revan had no equals, not yet at least. Only those who were weaker, and those who were stronger. Strength was all that mattered, the strong rule and the weak perish, it was not only the primary law of nature, but also the supreme truth of the galaxy. There was no peace, there was no justice, there was only strength. As a Mandalorian it had been a teaching he had taken to heart, as the only Mandalorian to have touched the Force, thanks to his unique parentage, it was what kept him going, kept him on his feet when he should have collapsed in pain or exhaustion or delirium.  
The air was cold, freezing and a mist came from Revan's mouth as he moved through the unstable sand of Tatooine's desert, puffs of fog lingering in the dry, cool air before they dispersed into the greedy desert. A faint blue shadowed the former Mandalorian and Revan Qel-Droma, the last of the Mandalorian Bloodraven Clan by his mother and the last of the Qel-Droma family by his father, Ulic, struggled on, sweat causing tendrils of steam to escape his body in the chilled nighttime air of Tatooine's desert. Relentlessly, with a stamina that would have put even his dead mother to shame, Revan endured the pain, endured the exhaustion as he moved on, forty kilometers from the destroyed Tusken camp and nearly thirty from the only civilized settlement on Tatooine's surface. In a fire-man's carry, an unconscious Jedi rested across Revan's shoulders, a bruise on her forehead telling of the reason for her state while a trail of blood leaked across her pale features and onto Revan's cloak, staining the already soiled brown a dark crimson as a small cloud of fog came from her nostrils, telling that she was at least alive.

Revan moved on, ever towards the dark presence of the Starmap and its behemoth of a guardian, the Krayt Dragon was easily sensed in the distance, hunting in the night after spending most of the day sunning itself in Tatooine's mid-day heat before it became too much even for the lizard and it moved to rest in the cave before nightfall came. Now the dragon moved through the desert, tracking rogue Bantha with a stealth that was mind-boggling for its gargantuan size. A moan, small and feminine caught Revan's ears and the deposed Sith Lord stopped, kneeling to the ground and laying his burden down as he took a quick survey of his surroundings in through two brown, attentive eyes. Exhaustion, pain could wait. A gentle slap to the Jedi's face caused two blue eyes, bright with pain yet clouded a murky, pale blue with confusion and sickness to open. Groggily, Kaera Nurr sat up, resting her left hand on her forehead, where a Tusken Raider had brutally smashed a Gaffi stick into her skull. Only a precise shot from HK-47 into the Tusken Raider's back had saved the Jedi's life and Kaera wondered briefly how she came to be where she was when her last coherent memory was all Hell breaking loose within the Tusken Camp.

Peace had not been an option the Sandpeople were willing to broach. They simply wanted all things unnatural _gone_ from their world. An anger, primal and so focused that it sickened her senses was directed at not her, but Revan and she remembered the slow, dangerous smile that crossed Revan's face before the Tusken Chieftain had whispered one word to the man, a word strangely understandable.

_"Revanchist."_

Living up to his namesake, Revan had effectively and brutally annihilated any Tusken warriors that had assaulted him, a slaughter the likes of which Kaera had never witnessed before had been unleashed as a blur of brown robes and a red blade twisted in a whirlwind of destruction, fires had started in the camp by the time she had found Griff Vao's cell and freed him as well as a group fo captured Jawa. Revan had chased off after a Tusken that had fled from him and Kaera was surprised when Griff Vao had backed away from her, cowering. She had turned and, through some stroke of luck killed the charging Tusken Raider before four more descended upon her, charging with suicidal abandon and knocking her to the ground before three more had come, two falling to blasterfire from a blood-soaked assassin droid before the third had charged at her, staggering as his Gaffi stick brutally clipped her skull.

She had been lucky, she knew, that it had been the blunted edge and not the jagged cutting edge that had struck her and she recalled a dazed effort to fight off the dead weight of four Tusken corpses literally piled on top of her before she had faded into oblivion, awakening only when a jarring pain had laced up her side, accompanied by another and another as Revan's effort to escape from the vicinity of the Tusken camp had jarred a bruised rib in her chest. Groaning, Kaera tried to find her center, the calm of the Force descending over her and muting the pain in her body slightly before everything around her focused into crystal clarity. Dazed, blue eyes widened slightly in surprise at how much distance Revan had covered in the desert and she glanced with a small amount of concern at the Mandalorian, seeing the only child fathered by the Dark Lord and Dark Jedi Ulic Qel-Droma.

Revan's heritage was forgotten, buried beneath falsified records that only a Jedi Librarian, the Jedi Knight Kreia to be precise; could alter and the parentage of Revan was never asked, his Mandalorian name being accepted as his own while only Kreia and the boy himself lived to know his father had once been a powerful Jedi and Dark Lord of the Sith. Had the Jedi known of Revan's father, they would have known where his astounding power had come from, but Kreia had hidden the facts well, using the Clan name of Revan's slain mother as the boy's surname. Qel-Droma was a name that was as cursed as it was revered within the Jedi Order and with the death of Duron Qel-Droma, Guun Han Saresh and Shaela Nurr at the conclusion of the Great Hunt, no Force-sensitive members of the Qel-Droma family had been considered for acceptance within the Jedi Order. Revan had never met his cousin Duron, just as Kaera had never met her aunt Shaela and while Revan knew from his mother the name of his father and understood the logic in keeping it hidden, he had resented the Jedi for their prejudice towards his family following his father's fall.

How easily dozens of generations of loyal and honorable Qel-Droma were forgotten in the wake of a single fall. The Council was fearful, distrustful of the name after Ulic's fall and was partially responsible for Duron's death on Korriban because of their hypocritical fears. Not reinforcing Duron, Shaela and Guun had been due to the fears of the Council in the nephew of Ulic following in his uncles footsteps. Revan had not wanted to tempt the same prejudice as the son of a deposed Dark Lord and for a time he had believed in the Jedi, at least until his people had invaded the Republic and the Jedi had hidden away in their temples and enclaves, hiding and waiting out the war they should have fought, would have, had the Council not been ruled by fear. When he'd taken on the mantle of Dark Lord of the Sith, Revan had found it fitting, though he never spoke of his parentage to anyone other than Kreia. Ever. The Jedi would only use the confirmation of their fears as a way of oppressing others, of keeping others from their full potential. Life was the pursuit of strength, the fulfillment of one's full potential and Revan saw it was a great crime to restrict one's self to a narrow-minded and dogmatic practice of a dying and weakened Jedi Order.

Revan smirked faintly in his exhausted state as his thoughts dwelled on family. Bastila's mother and Mission's brother had brought up memories of his own twisted little family and he found the whole state of affairs amusing, if not a little ironic. His father had been the Dark Lord of the Sith before him, the one to survive after Exar Kun's destruction on Yavin IV and Revan and his former Jedi Master Kreia had had a good, long laugh at that. Glancing down at the semi-alert Jedi, Revan deemed them safe for the moment as he holstered his pistol, glad he had brought a ranged weapon and not just his lightsabers. It would have been much more troublesome evading the Tusken patrols and survivors had there not been a brief, fairly weak sandstorm just before dusk and Revan was aware he was covered, quite completely in sand. Shifting slightly, the deposed Dark Lord slowly removed his cloak, shaking out the sand before he calmly brushed off what he could of his robes, grooming himself of all things in the middle of a desert under a clear, freezing sky.

Turning her attention from Revan's ineffective effort to rid himself of sand, Kaera Nurr slowly blinked at the dark fluid covering her palm as she removed it from her head. Blood, caked with sand was visible in the vibrant blue cast by the stars above and the Jedi Knight shifted uncomfortably, glancing back at Revan as the deposed Dark Lord frowned at his gloves, his fingers flicking at nearly invisible particles of sand as annoyance set over his aura. Resisting the urge to find amusement in the ridiculous display, Kaera glanced off towards the lights cast far on the horizon from Anchorhead, her blue eyes glowing faintly in the starlight. The view of the stars was incredible, almost breathtaking from the desert but Kaera focused on the here and the now. They had escaped from the Tusken Camp, Revan carrying her most of the way and she was silent a moment, staring off towards Anchorhead in complete silence before speaking to Revan. He had saved her life, not a simple task as they were outnumbered by close to a thousand and Kaera knew Revan could have easily left her behind. He should have, as a Dark Lord of the Sith, he would have but something about him was different, changed from what she had expected of a Sith Lord and she found it an unpleasant reality that invaded on her preconceptions and the resentment she had felt for the Dark Jedi and Sith.  
"Thank you..."  
Revan froze a moment at the soft voice, glancing towards the still-sitting Jedi Knight with a single raised brow before he shrugged it off, returning his attention to his soiled gloves.

"We had a deal. My word would have little to no meaning if I had left you to your fate in that camp and I do not break oaths lightly."  
This, Kaera knew. Revan had taken an oath as a Jedi Knight to follow the will of the Force and protect the Republic and while it seemed as if Revan had done the opposite, the Jedi Masters had always told them to trust in their feelings and Revan had, as a Dark Lord of the Sith, followed his feelings to the extreme. Frowning, Kaera wondered as to the Mandalorian's motives before she decided she could do with a more level view of their situation and forced herself to stand, studiously ignoring the lack of help Revan offered her. Part of her was pleased he made no move to help her to her feet while another was concerned. It could mean he simply had no cares for her comfort, or bad manners, but Kaera doubted that. Likely, Revan was playing some psychological game with her, letting her think she was in control of the situation when he had literally carried her across an unknown expanse of desert, on foot in an amazing amount of time.

Revan ignored the Jedi as she stood to her feet, content to remove the flask tied to his belt as he took in a small mouthful of water, sloshed it around his mouth before spitting it out into the sand. Wasteful, perhaps, but his mouth had been filled with particles of sand and he was in no mood to be drinking sandy water. Brushing off his beard carefully, Revan took a small, calculated drink from the water container, offering the flask to Kaera as she eyed him with suspicion.

"You're wasting water."  
Kaera chastised, taking a drink and immediately coughing as she tried to swallow the combination of sand, blood and water in her throat. Most of the water ended up in the sand and Revan said nothing, merely staring at the darkened sand, where the mixture of water, sand and Kaera's blood had ended up before looking to Kaera. The Jedi sighed, following Revan's previous example and took a short, satisfying drink of the surprisingly chilled water. Apparently the flask was not too greatly shielded to the elements and Kaera took another, liberal drink of the flask, considering her options while Revan stared through narrowed brown eyes at her forehead, a small frown on his lips before he blinked and the expression melted away no nothing. There had been concern for a brief moment, but Revan decided against feeling it an instant later. Kaera was a Jedi, an enemy and he had no assurances aside from her foolish commitment to the Jedi ways that she would not stab him in the back once they reached the Starmap. Deciding they had wasted enough time, Revan marched over to Kaera, snagging the flask of water from her hands as she attempted to take another drink and replaced the cap before tying the container to his belt.

"Don't drink it all, we might need it."  
Kaera glanced at her own belt, her own flask of water conspicuously absent and she sighed, silently agreeing with the deposed Sith Lord before following in his wake as he moved through the darkened desert, puffs of vapor hanging suspended in the air as he passed, the atmosphere of Tatooine greedily devouring every microbe of water that was left behind by the two Force-users.

Hours passed before Kaera Nurr worked up the courage and the clarity to speak to Revan. The man had been a Dark Lord of the Sith, the unrepentant and purest of evil that could exist in the galaxy, the polar opposite of a Jedi and the Light and Kaera wondered briefly what insanity had gripper her that she could form a truce, let alone co-exist with such a dark being for any period of time. She's respected Revan and the _Revanchists_ of the Mandalorian Wars. Jedi who had chosen Exile to protect the Republic, had turned their backs on the safety and comfort of the Order to save lives, only... it had cost more lives than anyone could have guessed.

"How do you live with yourself?"  
Revan may have been a Mandalorian, but he was human and Kaera knew that humans felt, it was only natural. As a Jedi, she suppressed, moved beyond her personal feelings and sought only balance, only serenity and peace while the Sith embraced their baser emotions, becoming nothing more than madmen and murderers when they fully gave in to darkness. Revan all but stopped in place, his breath fogging the air in front of him and the mist hanging eerily still in the dry, dark air of Tatooine. A slight breeze caused the fog to disperse before it was replaced by another and Kaera noticed the way Revan's hands clenched as he honestly considered her question.

"I don't."  
Revan muttered, almost offhandedly with a slightly confused expression. He did not feel, did not allow himself to feel what he was doing. There was only logic, only the Force and he did what was needed, completed the task as a droid would and he separated his anger, his hatred, his resentment and his guilt from those actions. He felt nothing, nothing real anyways. Annoyance, disgust, those were always there, phantoms of a disillusioned servant of the Force that had lost his way and Revan had fallen back on the Mandalorian ways, the ways of the Sith, followed the path his parentage demanded and he found himself relieved to feel nothing.

Guilt, pain, sorrow. It had been a constant companion during the Mandalorian wars, when he watched the others that had followed him, the Revanchists; slaughtered and tortured, mutilated and maimed as the war dragged on. Wounds inflicted by his own people upon the brothers and sisters he'd grown alongside. It was only a matter of time before the weight of causing the death of his own people, in either case, Jedi or Mandalorian; came crashing down on his psyche and Revan had gone mad for a short time, had given in to the weakness his humanity left him and he became a monster, unfeeling and uncaring of the world around him. Until Malak's betrayal. Until a Jedi Padawan had so foolishly saved his worthless life and bound herself to him, likely for eternity.

"I have not been myself, Kaera Nurr, since the moment Bastila Shan saved my life on the bridge of my flagship. The... _emotions_ I feel are hers, not mine. She bonded with my mind, my essence to save my life, at such a great cost to herself and it awakened... _is_ awakening parts of myself I never fully explored until Taris. I am _not_ Darth Revan, nor am I Revan Bloodraven, or Revan Qel-Droma, or even that pawn, Tauryn Katarn. I'm none of them, yet all of them. A son of the Mandalorians, a Jedi Knight, the successor in blood and by acts of the Mantle of Dark Lord of the Sith and a soldiers, living long-past his own time."  
Revan frowned, not sure why he had revealed so much about himself, turning, the deposed Dark Lord saw the look of shock in Kaera's face and knew she was thinking along similar lines.

"I fought from necessity, because I did not know what else to do. I fought, not because it was the right thing to do, but because it was the necessary thing to do. I coated the galaxy in a darkness that even the Sith find hard... find impossible to control and now I find myself without a purpose. I don't live with what I've done, Kara, because I do not feel, do not associate with my actions... at least, not until that bloody Padawan- No, I won't blame her for this infection upon my mind, my thoughts. She had no idea what she was doing and now I see myself through her eyes, I see the monster and the man, I see what I've done and feel how she feels, yet I, Revan, feel nothing. It is through Bastila Shan that I gain a semblance of compassion. Her nature has infected me because of this _bond_ and I find it difficult to block her thoughts, block the horror she feels at what I am. Yet... she is an incredibly compassionate person, I cannot even begin to fathom through logic or emotions why she feels compassion for me, but I know if this bond were broken, if she were to no longer _feel_ as she does that I would reclaim the man I was."  
A chill passed through the Jedi Knight and she realized just how fragile the civility, the neutral and reasonable Revan that had surfaced on Taris was and she realized that Bastila Shan was the key to all this. As a Sith Lord, Revan had turned off his capacity to feel and only when Bastila Shan had combined the essence of her mind and soul to his, did it become necessary, possible for him to feel anything at any real level. He'd surrendered himself to his fate beforehand but a glimpse of Bastila's compassion, of her capacity to forgive, had given him a brief hope of redemption. A confused, almost disgusted look crossed Revan's features as he considered these thoughts, his hands clenched into fists as he fixed dark, brown eyes onto the Jedi before him.

"I am not a good man, I am not a moral man. I have limits to the depths of darkness and evil and depravity I will practice, or allow to be practiced in my midst and so I will not _force_ Bastila Shan to remove this bond, I will not violate her mind and remove this... _thing_ that weakens me. But I will also not abide the foolish notion of redemption when I feel no remorse, no guilt... no _peace_. Until there is peace, I cannot think of redemption and peace, my dear, is something that none of us will ever see. It is the way of the universe to make war upon itself and there will be no peace, no redemption for me. I can only hope to- I can only _try_ to limit the damage I have done and this _thing_, this _being_ you see before you is not Revan. I am merely an echo of him, a fragment of a much larger individual, torn apart and put back together, incomplete, tainted by Jedi tampering and I will not _rape_ another's mind as mine was raped, I will not force such a violation upon the very essence of a being. Open your eyes to my Force-aura, Jedi. See what cannot be changed."  
Kaera did so, without hesitation and knew in that instant, after listening to Revan's detached voice and the subtle disgust in his tones that he would never force himself on anyone, regardless of the situation. It was a baser instinct within the man, one drilled into him since before he could remember that abhorred him to no end. The Jedi had no such qualms with violating Revan's mind and trying to change him, but his aura in the Force was too clouded- too dark for the process to remain intact and it was in that moment that the Jedi Knight in Kaera Nurr understood the Dark Lord in Revan.

He would murder, maim, destroy and torture, but he would not assault an individual in such an intimate matter as shattering their mind, would not physically do the same. The Jedi realized it was a Mandalorian virtue, one that conflicted with the Sith ways but which Revan would never release. Juhani, what had been done to her, Revan saw as a weakness of body and mind, a depraved act of a coward who tainted, destroyed utterly those weaker then them. Revan would kill himself to save his honor before he would do such a thing and Kaera found the entire ordeal disturbing. The Jedi had violated Revan in much the same way the slaver Xor had violated Juhani. They had taken away his choice, taken away his will and Forced his body to respond to their demands and she was disgusted with the thought, one that had idly passed through her mind but had lacked the clarity that the expression on Revan's face forced her to see.

"Bastila Shan is... I suppose you could say, my conscience and it is not I who feels, but her. I am... a parasite, leeching off of her emotions and her aura to survive, there is no other comparison in my mind. But the relationship of symbiotic. She keeps me alive and forces me to feel as she does, but I make her stronger as she delves ever deeper into the powers this bond opens between us. I cannot understand how it is possible, but... things are changing and I cannot be the man I was, be the Jedi, Sith or Mandalorian. I am the sum of all of my parts, the end of those men's lives and all you see before you is a phantom, a ghost of the past. A man who should have died long ago..."  
A pointless existence, that was all that was left. There was no fate, no destiny laid out before him, only the promise of more violence, of more pain and more guilt and sorrow and Revan wondered why the Jedi had gone through the trouble to save him. He had not wanted to die, had not wanted to cease to exist in this realm, but he had also not cared to his fate, not cared where his actions would lead him so long as the galaxy as a whole survived the coming storm that the True Sith were sure to unleash.

It left him in a very gray area, neutral, neither Jedi not Sith, but both. A memory of a great SIth Lord and a great Jedi Knight but not quite the same. He was weaker than he was as Darth Revan, but stronger than he was as the Revanchist, as the General Revan and Revan knew his powers would only grow, but then, so to would his connection with Bastila Shan and he wondered if his fragile sanity, what remained of who he had been so long ago, could survive the continued connection with the Jedi Padawan. She had breathed life into him, saved him but in doing so had also damned him to a fate worse than death. He would find no peace when her thoughts, her morals, so different from his own would assault him at every turn. The bond was growing stronger and with it, the Padawan's emotional responses to the memories in Revan's mind plagued the former Jedi Knight and he was left with only the fragments of who he was to hold any semblance of sanity.

It never occurred to Revan that Bastila was in a similar state of distress. As Bastila's emotions became Revan's, so to did his powers, his focus became hers and Bastila found the world that was opened up to her Force-senses, strengthened to crystal clarity by Revan's power; a terrifying thing. The galaxy through Revan's eyes was a dark place and while Bastila and many other Jedi had been disheartened by the Jedi Civil War, none had guessed as to the scale with which Revan used the Darkside as a weapon, used it to shape the very nature of the Force and of the galaxy.

"Revan.. _Qel-Droma?_"

Revan frowned, pulling away from his morbid thoughts. The thoughts of a dead man, lingering because of a Jedi Padawan and he stared impassively at Kaera Nurr, raising a brow slowly in silent acknowledgment. Kaera's features were pale, though a look of surprise and wariness was clear.  
"As in _Ulic Qel-Droma_?"  
Revan nodded slowly, allowing the Jedi to study his features. He's gotten many of his father's features, the hair and the eyes, but his facial structure was mostly his mother's, angled and sharp, cold and slightly oppressive. Ulic's features had been worn, aged unnaturally by the time of his death and the records of Ulic's image had been from his time as a Jedi Knight and Sith Lord. It was a bit ironic to Kaera that she, the last of the Nurr family in the Jedi Order would be traveling with the last of the Qel-Droma line, just as her aunt Shaela had with Duron before they'd disappeared during the Great Hunt.

"I can see it now..."  
Kaera muttered, eyeing Revan's features closely. He was Mandalorian, of that she had no doubt but he was not as tall, not as burly as most of his people, more... compact, she would say. He was still a tall man, standing just over two meters, but he was not a solid wall of muscle or a solid and towering mass of man like Malak. No, Revan was just built enough to have strength, but also mobility, agility. A carefully sculpted body to suit his fighting style, one unique to himself. A mixture of Jedi, Sith, Mandalorian and Echani fighting styles. One he had developed over the course of his life to make him one of the most deadly men in the galaxy.  
"Do not forget who I am. I do not seek redemption because I believe it cannot be for me. I know what I did, chose to act as I did and for that I will be lost to oblivion when I pass on from this realm, but I... do not wish to be an enemy of the Order or the Republic... or even Malak."

The surprise on Revan's face as he said Malak's name was also on Kaera's and the Jedi frowned, tensing suddenly as a warning pulsed through the Force. Revan did not seem to notice, his eyes focused skyward, staring no doubt in the direction Malak would have been and Kaera blinked away the fog in her mind, searching the desert warily. Something was wrong, something was-

"Oh Bloody Hell."  
Revan snapped his gaze from the stars to Kaera's face, eyeing the Jedi's horrified expression for only a second before he turned, looking up again and laughing mirthlessly as the gargantuan form of a Krayt Dragon's head looked down on them, its forked tongue flicking from its mouth and tasting the air, trying to sense the prey it had smelled moments before. Kaera glanced at Revan, the deposed Sith Lord's face a mixture of amusement and a bit of caution as he absently brushed his forehead. Kaera, unconsciously repeating the gesture felt the dull ache of the gash on her forehead and she wince as the Krayt Dragon looked down, directly at her and gave a low, rumbling growl. Blue and red blades snapped to life in the same moment, the Krayt Dragon's poor eyesight picking up the bright blades standing out against the darkness and it turned its head from side to side, uncertain of which prey to stalk before the blue beam slashed across its massive leg. Howling in pain, the Krayt Dragon thrashed violently as more searing wounds struck its flesh and it howled long into the night, its cries causing the Tusken Raiders that had been stalking Revan and Kaera to stop their pursuit, their brown-clad forms turning and running into the night in terror.

Kaera managed to strike the killing blow to the massive Krayt Dragon, having climbed into its back after Revan had tried, and failed to sever its spinal column and was thrown off by the beast's thrashing. Kaera had managed to scale the thrashing creature's side and drive her azure blade into its brain, a violent spasm shuddered along the Krayt before it fell still, letting out a long, final breath. A muffled curse and the hissing of a lightsaber drew the Jedi Knight's attention to Revan as the deposed Dark Lord sliced away a chunk of the Krayt Dragon's leg, the smell of burnt animal flesh lingering in the air. Dropping from the Krayt's back, Kaera approached Revan warily, seeing that he was trying to cut away the beast's forward left leg with his lightsaber. A closer inspection showed that Revan's left arm was buried beneath the creature's mass and Kaera winced in sympathy, moving to Revan's side and motioning for him to cease his efforts. A look of disgust crossed Revan's face at being helped by a Jedi before he flicked off the switch to his lightsaber, the faint blue glow of Kaera's blade glowing in his eyes as he watched her quickly and quietly cut away the creature's thick scales and flesh.

"Argh!"  
Revan snarled, pulling his hand free of the much lighter weight, before he stared down at his smashed fingers and ruined hand. It could be repaired in a matter of a day or so with a boneknitter and his Force-powers, but Revan knew his own Force-healing had already kicked in and the bones were mending back together, incorrectly. With a wordless growl, Revan kicked the side of the Krayt Dragon's corpse, clipping his lightsaber to his belt as he took his right hand and clasped his left, straightening the bones and fractures slowly, shivering in pain as he set them and held them in place. Kaera, checking the medkit she had with her knew it lacked the equipment necessary to repair Revan's injury, but she found several splints and with a nod of confirmation from Revan went about setting the delicate bones in his hand. Revan was breathing heavily through the entire process, his left eye twitching in a spasm as Kaera set his shattered digits. By the time the task was complete, Revan's skin had become fairly pale, though he remained alert and thoroughly annoyed as he delivered another kick to the Krayt Dragon's corpse for good measure.

"Bloody creature."  
Revan snarled, pulling his blaster pistol free and knowing he wouldn't be using his lightsaber again until his hand healed properly. Taking off the gunbelt, Revan allowed Kaera to fashion a makeshift sling and adjusted his injured arm while the Jedi checked its position and subtly sent out a small pulse of Force-energy to ease the pain and help heal the injury. They'd still need a boneknitter, but Revan's hand was set as properly as it could be and Kaera had a sneaking suspicion that his forearm was damaged as well. Even if he were wearing Mandalorian gauntlets, the pressure from the Krayt's massive weight would still be damaging.

Injuries taken care of, Revan and Kaera made their way into the Krayt Dragon's lair, the pitch black of the cavern so oppressive in Tatooine's night that Kaera drew her lightsaber, using the blue beam to cast a glow of her surroundings. A flickering through the Force drew the Jedi Knight's attention to a reflection in the distance, obsidian reflecting the glowing of her blade right back at her. Approaching the ancient relic cautiously, Kaera deactivated her lightsaber, pulling a datapad from her belt and recording the Starmap's information before she allowed her eyes to linger on the relic in silent thought. The darkside of the Force emanated from the relic, confusing the Jedi as she approached the device, touching it with her hand and giving it more attention than she had the one on Dantooine. Nemo's death had effected her at the time and she had little interest in studying the Starmap there on Dantooine, but here, in this cavern, the Starmap was so ancient, so utterly out of place that she wondered how it could have survived. Unconsciously voicing her thoughts, the Jedi started slightly as Revan's voice answered her.

"The Starmaps, the Star Forge itself, even the Temple that was the seat of power for the Infinite Empire are all machines, built through similar means to Sith Alchemy. You recall that ship Exar Kun used to destroy the Cron Star Cluster and Ossus? Naga Sadow's ancient battleship. It was basically a giant Force-battery that allowed the Force-users in control of it to harness their energy and destroy entire stars by creating subspace tears within them. The Rakatan technology is similar, each is Force-sensitive, though its purpose is for regeneration and not destruction. They infused the Force in their ships, buildings, weapons, everything... It somehow allowed the technology to survive for tens of thousands of years... to slowly rebuilt itself despite the damage time had done to it. This device looks brand new simply because it has the ability to restore itself to its programmed parameters, though the information that was stored within it has long since been lost to time, physically destroyed despite the device's restored functions. It cannot recover lost information, but it can restore itself. Fascinating technology, really."

Jedi often used lightsabers in a much more mundane way, bonding with their weapons and giving the lightsabers a small presence within the Force, simply from their maker's care. It was interesting, but also disturbing and Kaera turned away from the device, spotting Revan moving through the darkened cavern, using the light cast by the Starmap's hologram to locate the remains of Bastila Shan's father. Kneeling slowly beside the maimed body, Revan removed his sling before following suit with his cloak and slowly wrapped the remains, resetting his arm in the make-shift sling and pocketing the holocron the man had been carrying. It was damaged, but only slightly and the information would be intact. With some difficulty, Revan managed to lift the body and set it across his shoulders, though it took Kaera's help for that and the two vacated the cave, moving sedately towards Anchorhead. Revan cursed Czerka Corporation for not allowing air traffic outside of atmospheric entry and landing within the settlement. Any unofficial air or spacecraft would be intercepted by the orbiting Czerka security cruisers and Revan wondered why he didn't bother with bringing his swoop bike, sweat forming on his brow despite the chill of Tatooine's night. Next time he'd plan ahead.


	26. Chapter 25: Breaking Point

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"The Sith... the __**True Sith**__ have a legend... One of a being who would be conceived through the Force and be the epitome of perfection. This being would lead the Sith to their final victory but destroy them in the process. A perfect being conceived through the Force and above its influences I... really don't have words for the ridiculousness of that farfetched myth. But... ridiculous though it may be... the Sith believe it and if we can make them believe that I am the Sith'ari or whatever the devil they call it; well, we might just have the leverage we need to win this fight. None of us are above the influences the Force places upon us. It is simply too great a natural force to stand against its will... unless you remove yourself of your worry, your fear, your anger, your love... Become nothing, __**feel nothing**__ and the Force is your slave... I am sorry in some regards, my friend that this will weaken you... but the Sith'ari cannot have a disobedient apprentice."_

_The Dark Lord Revan to Alec Squinquargesimus aka "Darth Malak," shortly before __**slowly**__ removing his lower jaw via lightsaber_

Chapter 25: Breaking Point

Relentlessly, the heat from Tatooine's twin suns beat down upon the surface of the dry, desolate world. Miles away from the only _civilized_ settlement on the world, two shrouded eyes tracked the horizon of the desert, gleaming in predatory anticipation as they sought prey, sought something to hunt. A flickering of a shadow was reflected within the eyes and the figure moved, his form shrouded in tan robes as he stalked the sand dunes with unnatural grace. A flicking of the wrist, and the figure raised its weapon, howling in rage as it lunged for its prey.

The man that had once been called the Revanchist and Darth Revan stopped at the baying of the Tusken Raider, his eyes closing in exhaustion and annoyance before he shifted his weight, the body of Bastila Shan's father dropping to the ground and kicking up a cloud of sand and dust. Beside the deposed Sith Lord, Kaera Nurr tensed as she turned, her face matted with dried blood, sweat and a mixture of dust and sand. A slight breeze was making the area around them hazardous, a thin layer of sand having risen up in a cloud of dust that stood close to two meters high coated the surrounding ravines between the dunes and made plenty of hiding places for potential ambush. A single blasterbolt sounded, the charged energy slamming into the Tusken Raider's chest with the expected result, sending the Tatooine native to the ground. A shifting and agonized bellow was silenced a second later as Revan placed another shot into the Tusken's body, his face covered in sand, dust and sweat.

Without expression, Revan placed yet another shot into the Tusken's body, then another and another until a small, fragile-looking hand cautiously covered his own, uninjured right hand. The weapon silenced and the deposed Sith Lord cast a glare so cold at the Jedi that she shivered slightly, despite Tatooine's oppressive heat before she regained her control and pushed aside her exhaustion, pain and anger. Logic, Revan would respond to logic, to common sense if not common decency.

"The Raider is dead, Revan. This mutilation is only a waste of energy we might still need."  
The look of uncontrolled fury on Revan's matted features slowly, very slowly faded away, revealing a blank mask that many Jedi wore when annoyed. Regaining his control, Revan's left hand twitched, a spasm of pain drawing a subtle wince to his face before he fought off the reaction and holstered his pistol, his lightsabers resting on his belt, inactive but far from forgotten.

"I swear... I have killed more Tusken Raiders in the last four bloody hours than the hordes of Mandalorians Mandalore threw at me during his war. This- this is intolerable. Such reckless abandon in combat is nothing short of an insult, to the Raider as well as to me and- and there are _limits_, Kaera, to what I can tolerate. If... if only I had but a single starcruiser... I would... so very much love to turn this world to molten glass."  
Knowing Revan had done similar things to worlds that had done little to nothing to offend him, the Jedi flinched slightly, remembering all too well who her companion was.

_"The truce, Kaera. Remember the truce. Jedi do not deceive, Jedi do not lie... unless it is the only option and Revan will not so easily be vanquished. Patience... peace. There is no emotion..."_

Mentally coaching herself, Kaera glanced sadly down at Bastila Shan's father before kneeling beside the body and setting it in a more comfortable-looking position. Revan, having lost his interest in the corpse's comfort after carrying it through a desert merely stared at the Jedi in silence before turning his attention to the slain Tusken. Poking the tip of his boot in the corpse, Revan shrugged mentally as he glanced to the horizon, the walls of Anchorhead visible from his vantage point. A whizzing noise drew Revan's attention to a displaced portion of sand beside him before he ducked, jarring his injury and snarling in a wordless growl as he dropped out of the line-of-sight of the Tuskens shooting projectiles at him. Kaera was not far behind the deposed Sith Lord and the Jedi held her lightsaber in hand while Revan twisted in his prone position to free his pistol from its holster.

"There is no bloody end to this."  
Revan muttered in disgust, rolling over so he was on his back as he stared at Tatooine's clear blue sky, transfixed for a moment before the sound of approaching footsteps in the sand brought him back to reality. Tightening his right-handed grasp on his pistol, Revan reached out slowly with the Force, tracking the Tuskens as they approached, the auras of the Tatooine-natives filled with anger and anticipation. Exhausted and relatively pissed off, Revan sneered in silence, his breathing evening out as sweat trailed down his face, burning in his eye for a moment before he blinked away the sensation and kicked his legs, spinning in the sand on his back and bringing his pistol to bear on a Tusken Raider's mask as it rose over the top of the sand dune. A single shot was fired and the Tusken ducked, howling in rage as it charged forward, swinging its rifle like a club. The rifle fell in two pieces, shortly followed by the Tusken Raider's body and Kaera twisted as she rose in a flourish, her lightsaber's blade disintegrating the projectiles fired at her as she moved into the fray, Revan not far behind as the former Sith Lord scrambled to his feet awkwardly, trying to not jar his injury further as he rose and fired several well-placed shots that injured or distracted several of the attacking Tuskens before Kaera dealt with them efficiently.

Respite lasted only moments before more Tusken Raiders appeared from the desert, enraged at the destruction of their encampment and seeking the blood of not only any offworlder but also the ones responsible.

"Oh for the love of-"  
Revan cut himself off, instead concentrating on shooting yet another Tusken Raider. Tatooine may have been sparsely populated, but it still held its fair amount of natives, natives that Revan was killing a significant chunk of. At least that way of thinking made his exhausted and pained body feel slightly better. Mandalorians had been relentless, but the Tusken Raiders were just insane. At least a Mandalorian knew well enough to _avoid_ a blade, the Tuskens attacked and fought like animals, charging headlong into the fray and swinging their weapons around until nothing remained, one way or another.

Twenty dead bodies later, Revan was readjusting the corpse of Bastila's father across his shoulders with Kaera's help, the Jedi frowning as she wiped some sweat mixed with blood from her eyes. The Tuskens were attacking in waves, almost in patterns and she was beginning to see it. Glancing at Revan, she saw no such realization in his eyes, likely due to the exhaustion and pain. When the deposed Sith Lord kicked a nearby Tusken Raider's corpse and cursed it in Mando'a, Kaera amended her conclusion to a lack of imagination.

The silence that grew between the Jedi and Dark Jedi grew oppressive as they moved through Tatooine's mid-day heat, the lack of rest, constant stopping to fight and the injuries making the trek much longer than it had been initially. At an end to even her significant patience, Kaera decided to try making conversation with Revan, wanting to take her mind off the next inevitable attack.

"How did you convince so many Jedi to follow your Sith ways?"  
The Jedi's eyes widened slightly as she realized her thoughtless question, her curiosity overcoming her intelligence in her state of exhaustion. She'd meant to ask Revan how he embraced Sith ideals, not how he planned to break Jedi. If he followed the train of thought for too long he might be tempted to just _show_ her and she had no desire to be tempted by the darkside.

"Exhaustion brought on by mild amounts of pain, psychic assaults of negative emotions and the patience of the torturer to inflict pain, not damage... At least that is how I trained the others to do it, I just blasted them with Force lightning till I got bored and killed them, or they broke."  
Revan's tone was blank, like he was reading an instruction manual and Kaera stared at the sand-covered and battered deposed Sith Lord with a small amount of fear, but also curiosity. Force-lightning hurt like all Hell, she knew that firsthand and while she'd only experienced mere seconds of the torturous energy, she could not begin to fathom the long-term effects of its destructive power. Revan was a master of the Darkside and could easily educate her in such things but the Jedi Knight saw in that moment something that she never had before in Revan. An opening.. He was tired, so tired that he wasn't thinking before speaking and she could use it to her advantage without violating their truce.

"Why are you so interested in Bastila Shan, let alone her father?"  
Revan, speaking again without thinking droned on in an emotionless voice.

"I find the Padawan's presence troublesome... yet entertaining. As I have no current goals since I've stopped caring about the threat of the True Sith, I find myself dwelling too long on... unpleasant memories. The Padawan acts as a distraction... even as a guide to those thoughts and I'm slowly reconstructing my former identity... and yes, I am still recovering from the Jedi's Mindwipe. As for Bastila's father... It's a matter of honor. I am ultimately responsible for the Krayt Dragon's presence and I should be the one to recover the remains of the man... its... the polite thing to do."

Revan frowned, blinking away the haze in his mind as he looked around the desert surrounding him before shaking his head and letting out a weak cough. He was exhausted, suffering from a mild heat stroke and he felt the aftereffects of a Force-suggestion. Recovering from what most of the galaxy would refer to as heavy brain damage and psychic assaults thanks to the Jedi High Council, Revan felt like he had just taken a Basilisk War Droid head on and lost. Glancing sidelong at Kaera, Revan frowned at the Jedi's similar state and decided to ignore the violation of his mind. Other Jedi had done worse and he was in no condition to have a duel with Kaera at that point. Shooting Tusken Raiders was easier than shooting a seasoned Jedi Knight. Blinking, Revan realized Kaera was again asking him a question and he felt his mouth beginning to form the words to the reply before he locked his jaw, turning a glare at the Jedi that caused her to start slightly.

"Say that again?"  
Revan asked, his voice a dry whisper and much rougher than it normally was. Even his accent had lost its core refinement, telling of his Mandalorian origins. The Jedi collected herself, deciding she would press her luck. Well... not luck, there was no such thing as luck, only the Force.

"Do you really consider the monstrous acts you've done are at all for the greater good?"  
Kaera honestly wanted to know. She had liked Revan when he was a Jedi Knight, even if she had not known him personally, his actions, morals and strengths were well-known even before the Mandalorian Wars and her interaction with him on Taris, while a bit strained at times and completely one-sided had given her an insight into not who Revan was, but who he _could _be if given the proper incentive. She had genuinely liked Tauryn Katarn and while he had been a figment of her imagination, and her logic and training told her to disregard the false identity, the Jedi Knight had difficulty not seeing that man in Revan.

"Monsters are not born... they're nurtured. You must look not to the monster for blame... but the one- the circumstances that created the monster. Perhaps... then they aren't so monstrous."  
The deposed Sith Lord's voice regained some of its Core refinement and Revan's lips turned down in a frown as he gazed off into the distance, contemplating his own words before shrugging mentally and rising slowly, fighting back the urge to groan in pained exhaustion. Lifting the body of Bastila's father, Revan grunted in pain as he shifted his burden before he slowly began walking towards Anchorhead, calling out behind him as Kaera followed.

"You should really be asking me why I found it necessary to defy your Masters."  
Kaera, weary and no longer interested in Revan's nonesense said nothing, following behind the deposed Sith Lord sedately as she kept her senses open to her surroundings, ever-ready for the threat of Tusken Raiders. A mockingly refined voice cut through her concentration and she resisted the urge to do as it demanded, tempting as it was.

"Come now, Kaera Nurr. Where is the outrage, that oh so offended defense of the Jedi Council and their infallible wisdom? I honestly want to hear it, for the billionth time. It never gets old destroying a Jedi's faith in their vaunted Order. I would say I hate the Jedi Council, but that isn't a powerful enough word for it... I don't think there is a word for how exactly the Jedi Order and their... ways makes me feel. I just know that I live, I exist only to end them. My only purpose, since I no longer care about the True Sith is to exact revenge against the Jedi Covenant... and the Order that harbored them, allowed them to be spawned in the first place. I live to see the death of the Jedi ways, the Jedi ideals and I will do all within my considerable power to destroy them. I want your blood on my hands, your corpses at my feet. I cannot tolerate your existence, the lies, the arrogance, the superiority! It disgusts me!"

Revan had dropped the body again and was in her face. Sneering slightly, Kaera fought to keep her expression neutral as the angry Mandalorian and deposed Sith Lord raged before her.

"The Jedi made me weak, made me _care_ for those fool weaklings they were supposed to protect but they didn't protect them, did they? When I tried to save the Republic from my own people they declared me a criminal, a rebel and traitor when all I wanted was to save lives. The High Council at the ruling of that bastard Lucian Draay wanted to detain _me_. Me! Never have I felt so much hatred of one person. I respected that man, trusted him and he betrayed me. I respected the Order and they proved they were beneath my respect, beneath my contempt. If you think for one instant that I will forget what the Jedi failed to do, what they tried to do to me before I even entertained the thought of using the Darkside of the Force, if you think I will forget what the Jedi Covenant did on Taris at Lucian Draay's commands you are sorely and hopelessly mistaken. All Jedi will convert or die and the tattered remains of the Jedi Covenant will wither away to dust. That is all I live for."  
Revan stomped off, his body charged with rage and adrenaline as he stalked away, pausing only to glance at the discarded body of Bastila Shan's father. Silently, Kaera watched as the deposed Sith Lord mentally debated the advantages to leaving the body before his Mandalorian honor got a hold of him and he collected the remains once more, a look of complete contempt crossing his face as he met the Jedi Knight's blue gaze through smoldering brown eyes.

"Whatever truce we have ends the moment I leave this world's surface. I have no interest in saving Jedi from themselves, I have long ago lost that interest. Now I only live to see the Order burn for its crimes, its sins and its weakness."

A pulse of Force energy slammed mercilessly into Revan's face, the body he had been carrying falling to the ground and rolling away as the outstretched hand of Kaera Nurr lowered. The Jedi stared down at Revan's form impassively before she moved on, satisfied that she had calmed the man down through the only means he would acknowledge with any form of respect. Brute force.

"What the _Hell!_"  
Revan all but snarled, hoisting his legs into the air and using them as a counterbalance to launch himself from his back to his feet. Swaying unsteadily as he shook off exhaustion, pain and a bit of surprise, Revan looked after Kaera's slowly retreating form, a smirk crossing his lips as he chuckled, shaking his head slightly.

"I suppose I was getting a little too fervent for your tastes?"  
Revan asked calmly as he recollected his burden with some difficulty before following Kaera's path. The Jedi scowled slightly, glancing over her shoulder at the much calmer deposed Sith Lord.

"If you think I wish to hear of the Jedi Covenant and the Padawan Massacre as an excuse for your behavior you are mistaken, Lord Revan. I've no interest in hearing _your side_ of things. The simple and horrifying truth of the matter is that none of us are perfect and mistakes... vast... horrifying mistakes are made. Blaming the Jedi Order for the actions of the Covenant and the Taris Masters so many years ago is pointless and you know the High Council was deceived... we were all deceived... yet in the end, your actions proved Lucian and the Covenant right. If they had managed to stop you and the other Revanchists, perhaps the Mandalorians would have won the war, but they would never have stood against the full might of a united Jedi Order, a whole Order and not the broken and scattered joke you tried to throw against them like some primitive cudgel."  
Revan's features showed surprise and Kaera resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Obviously Revan was not a man who was told he was wrong very often. Or at least, one who was told in great detail of his faults. Vague accusations did not hold the bitter cut that solid truths did and Kaera Nurr was not one to throw around pointless accusations without putting a lot of careful thought and research into her responses. It justified the opponent if you did not have all the facts, or at least enough key facts.

"Where would you be if the Jedi Order never took you in, trained you? You think that you would be some great Mandalorian warlord? You would be untrained, weaker than you were as a Jedi and it would have been no hard thing to kill you. You would be dead, along with your people because the Jedi Order would have never been weakened by your actions, the Covenant would never have had their visions of your fall and mistaken it for their own apprentices and countless billions of lives, dozens of destroyed worlds would still exist. You are a plague, Revan. A plague upon the galaxy, upon the Jedi Order. You are the second coming of Exar Kun's ideals and you have done far greater damage than any other man who has ever existed. History will not remember you as a hero or a great martyr who sacrificed himself and his people for the safety of the galaxy. You will only be remembered as you are, a monster. Death... and you will not be missed, Sith Lord. Your death will be rejoiced, celebrated across the galaxy when you could have been so much more, so much better a man. In the end, when the dust your barbaric war kicked up settles, you will be remembered as what you are and you will be hated for all time."  
Revan's face was blank for most of Kaera's speech though he looked decidedly smug at the end. She had little grasp on the truth purpose of his fall and his hatred had only made justification easier on his part. If there was no purpose to his fall he would have gone mad much sooner. He had held on to his sanity as long as he could, inflicted as much pain on the galaxy as he could to nullify the True Sith's influence. A culture so alien to the Republic's would not have allowed those of other mindsets to survive them and Revan had made the galaxy a harsher but in the end, stronger place. He made the galaxy a place that would survive the coming of the True Sith and even if his name was cursed and damned for the rest of time, he knew the galaxy he had once protected and in a way always had would survive because of it. The weakness of the Republic's ways would be forgotten in hatred and regardless of who won the Jedi Civil War, they would survive the Sith, they would destroy the Sith because Revan had quite simply stirred up the hornet's nest.

The hatred of the Republic for the term Sith would be unmatched and it would suck the very power from the Sith, effectively taking the wind from their sails and deafening the Sith's cry for vengeance and retribution in the Republic's cry for blood and revenge. His name's sake, Revanchist, would live on beyond him and the galaxy would survive in a form he could at least recognize, unlike the insanity of the True Sith's anarchist horde. To be united in such a complete hatred would give the Republic all it needed to consume the Sith, when they launched their invasion. Martial might be damned, anger and hatred were what won wars, the resolve it brought to a world's people was what forced their hands to do what was necessary, what was needed of them and cowardice would die the fiery and painful death it deserved.

"You wound me, Kaera. But please, refrain from speaking. Nobody likes a know-it-all..."

Chuckling, Revan ignored the incredulous look that crossed Kaera's face as he marched on towards Anchorhead, a much lighter weight in his steps. He had done the necessary thing to protect the galaxy and it would survive. Morality, consequences and glory be damned. His honor, at least in his own mind was intact and he would not doubt himself, would not be weakened by insecurities and uncertainty. He was Revan Qel-Droma of the Bloodraven Clan, former Sith Lord and Jedi, trained Mandalorian Warrior and proven Republic General. What did it matter if his actions had been evil, he knew he was right in the end and when the True Sith came, none of the arguments or blame would matter. All that mattered was survival.

Canderous Ordo hesitated as he stared out over the expanse of Tatooine's Dune Sea. Jagi Ordo had issued him a challenge hours before to meet him in the desert and settle a dispute of honor in the proper Mandalorian way, minus the battle circle. A duel to the death, one on one and with no restraint. The problem was, Canderous wasn't too certain Jagi was wrong in accusing him of single-handedly destroying the Ordo Clan in what was one of his greatest moments of glory. Pride and glory were important to Mandalorians, especially Generals but Canderous could not deny that Clan Ordo had paid a heavy price. Spotting a set of shadows in the desert, the Mandalorian Mercenary started up the speeder he had commandeered for the duel and sped off towards Revan and Kaera. He needed advice on his battle strategy before he could decide if Jagi was right or wrong in his accusation. His honor could not stand the thought of being wrong, even if he won the duel with Jagi.

"Thousands of years ago the Jedi Order was very different than it is today. Now all you hear the Council speaking of is the light and the dark, how the light will overcome the Darkside in the end because of dedication, goodness and a healthy dose of other Bantha dung. Before all of this, before Jedi took on the name and before Sith even left Korriban the Order was about balance. The galaxy is a large place with so much hidden history, knowledge and danger that it is forgotten or never found, yet it remains there, Kaera, and you should mind where you travel. There are places in this galaxy that even the Sith fear to tread, and fear is the ally of the Sith."  
Revan had grown bored with the silence between he and Kaera and had persisted in trying to explain at least part of his reasoning behind what he had done. A true answer to Kaera's question could not be given by words, only by experience. To see what he saw in the Trayus Core on Malachor V, to _feel_ the all-encompassing darkness of the True Sith and their intentions through that ancient Sith device would be worth a lifetime of words but he was not prepared to return to Malachor V. He had feared that place, as all Mandalorians did. To thrive in harsh conditions is to be respected amongst Mandalorians but to try to exist on Malachor V was suicide by stupidity and no Mandalorian with any respect for their Clan's name would settle on the barren deathtrap of a planet. Malachor V had no drinkable water, regardless of filtration technology, no resources and no strategic value as anything other than a prison or training ground.

"Enough with the history lessons and your pointlessly vague explanations of things you refuse to explain in detail. Speak plainly, Revan, or be silent."

Revan chuckled, smirking slightly through his exhaustion as he glanced at Kaera. She had spirit in her, the same as Bastila and it was an admirable quality in a woman. That she would take whatever he threw at her and toss it right back was enough to gain his interest, if only in passing. Like all Jedi, Kaera had trained most of her life and had the body of a ridiculously healthy and athletic human, though she was slightly less feminine than Bastila and taller. Bastila had a fuller body and her muscles were less toned, less defined, likely from a lack of Jedi Knight training and Revan shook his head, trying to banish the errant thoughts. If he kept his mind in that gutter long enough he might consider acting on his more male impulses and that, Revan knew; would end badly. No longer amused, Revan's face grew blank as he walked on in silence, his eyes twitching every few steps as his mind lingered on Bastila Shan. What hold did the Padawan have over him that he would find her in his thoughts at such a time when being aware of his surroundings was infinitely more important? Sneering in silent disgust, Revan put more effort than he would have liked to admit into focusing on his surroundings, his eyes latching on to an approaching speck on the horizon, near the walls of Anchorhead.

"Enough of this intellectually stimulating conversation. Our ride is here."  
Raising a brow at the mocking tone in Revan's voice, Kaera glanced off towards the approaching speeder and frowned, wondering why she hadn't sensed it earlier. Glancing up at the twin suns of Tatooine, Kaera shrugged mentally, sparing Revan a faintly impressed glance. She could hardly force herself to move another step while Revan had been carrying both his injuries and the added weight of a corpse. Deciding some questions were better left unanswered, Kaera came to a stop beside Revan as Canderous pulled the speeder he was in alongside them and cast a wary gaze towards the corpse Revan was carrying.

"Friend of yours?"  
The Mandalorian muttered, the amusement in his voice dead before he reached the end of his short comment. Revan's brow rose slightly as he secured the body and took a seat in the speeder, immediately ransacking the medkit there for painkillers as well as stimulants. Pain was to be borne, but it was just plain stupid to turn down treatment when it was available.

"Bastila's father."  
Revan stated plainly, not bothering to elaborate. Not bothering to ask, Canderous merely stared at Revan's injuries critically before turning his steel-gray eyes to Kaera's obvious battle damage.  
"Humph. Looks like I missed all the fun."  
Revan's lip curled in disgust as he adjusted one of his fingers with a snap. A grunt of pain was his only acknowledgment of the statement as Canderous took his seat again and took off on a vector away from Anchorhead. Not paying attention, Revan did not notice the trajectory until Kaera's weary voice spoke up with a hint of suspicion.

"Is this the part where you take me into the desert and quietly dispose of me?"

Glancing towards Canderous, Revan caught the Mandalorian's longing expression and cleared his throat in silent warning to the older Mandalorian as he surveyed their destination.

"No, it appears someone is setting up a battle circle..."  
Revan's voice trailed off as the speeder slowed, approaching a small group of Mandalorians that were gathered in the desert near a large destroyed Sandcrawler.

"You bring these _Jetii_ with you, Canderous? Have you forgotten all of your honor since leaving your Clan to burn over Althir?"

Revan caught sight of a silver gleam and narrowed his eyes, seeing Canderous carrying a folded sheet of cloth, the contents catching the eyes of every Mandalorian present.

"It- it can't be. That mask was lost over Malachor V to that honorless Bloodraven traitor."  
A look of complete intolerance crossed Revan's battered, weary features and he stood, preparing himself to end lives. Canderous' formal words stopped the Mandalorian-raised former Jedi and Revan merely wore a sour expression as he waited silently.

"As High General of Clan Ordo, as the holder of Mandalore's mask, I accept your challenge, Jagi of Clan Ordo. Let battle decide who of us shall retain their honor."  
Jagi's brown eyes did not waver as they held Canderous' steel blue. Two Mandalorians would enter the battle circle and only one would leave. It was a fight to the death, for the honor of the warrior. Staring at the olive-skinned Mandalorian, Revan settled back against the speeder, a look of momentary unease crossing his eyes as he took in Jagi's stance and youth. The man was experienced and still young, still strong and while Canderous was a great warrior, he was also in his late fifties, nearly sixty and Revan could easily read the reluctance mixed with rage in the older Mandalorian's eyes. Canderous did not want to kill Jagi, but he could not ignore the challenge to his honor. Revan had no such regard for Jagi Ordo's life and would have gladly ended the man's life, had it been his honor that was _directly_ challenged.

"What is this all about?"  
A soft voice asked quietly and Revan twitched slightly, betraying his startlement as he glanced at the forgotten Jedi Knight. Kaera had simply shrank into the background when his honor and integrity had been called into question. Revan's self-control was phenomenal though and the storm of rage he felt at Jagi's callous, dismissive words of his defeat of Mandalore and obtaining of the mask was contained, hidden behind a wall of apathy. Jagi's opinion didn't matter. No one's did.

"Haven't a clue, Kaera. All I know is what I was taught as a child. They enter a duel, one-on-one and fight until one is dead. Whoever lives retains his honor and whoever dies, dies honorably as a warrior and not as a coward. The offer is given during the fight for the other to drop their accusation, but they lose all of their honor if they accept defeat instead of death. As for what they fight over... again, I don't know and I don't really care."  
Kaera glanced at Revan, her eyes dropping to his crossed arms; where his undamaged hand rested against his bicep. Leather creaked slightly as it tightened and the Jedi knew Revan had bruised himself with the sheer force behind his clenched hand. The flash of rage though the Force at Jagi's dismissive tone of Revan's victory over Mandalore had hit a mark and Kaera caught a glimpse of the darkness within Revan that he had kept hidden and muted behind an emotionless mask and a disgusting amount of apathy. A clash of metal blades drew the Jedi's attention to the duel between Canderous and Jagi and she tensed, realizing that this was a fight to the death. Before the Jedi could intervene, a hand dropped to her belt, yanking her roughly from where she was poised to leap into the fray and bring an end to it with her lightsaber and she was promptly deposited on the ground at Revan's feet.

"Do not interfere. This is the Mandalorian way... this is Mandalorian Law. The Republic has no authority here, neither does the Jedi Order and this is a matter between two Mandalorians, nothing else. Do not escalate the battle."  
Catching the warning at the end of Revan's explanation, Kaera spotted the tensed figures of the Mandalorians that had accompanied Jagi. In essence she was watching a trial taking place and the sentence to be carried out, dishonor or death, would be given by whoever was more experienced. Appalled by such a violent culture, Kaera stood shakily, brushing herself off and watching the battle in morbid silence.

While older, Canderous was much, much stronger physically than Jagi and he used brute force to his advantage, remaining on the offensive and battering Jagi's defenses in the smoldering heat of Tatooine's twin suns. Blades clashed against one another and the observers watched as Jagi and Canderous fought for their honor.

"That looks like absolutely no style I can possibly place..."  
Kaera stated, unable to keep the fascination from her voice as she observed the duel. It was different watching a battle instead of being in the middle of one and she took the time to observe the patterns and subtleties in the style. Revan's eyes were focused on the fight and he said nothing in response, merely flickering his gaze to Jagi's comrades and waiting to see if they would interfere. They simply watched the battle between Jagi and Canderous, weapons in hand and ready to step in if the battle was concluded dishonorably..

"You let your Clan die for your own glory! I will not stand for you living when so many of your brothers and sisters perished! You even travel with Jedi scum!"  
Jagi and Canderous fought on, skills and training falling away to fury as they assailed one another with rage and brute strength. In the end, Canderous proved the stronger combatant and he struck a blow that sent Jagi's blade flying away. Moments later, blasterfire erupted and Canderous dropped to the ground, smoke rising from a burn on his chest.

"Honorless cowards!"  
Revan's voice hissed after a moment of stunned silence, disgust crossing his features as he charged forth, lightsaber ablaze. Jagi struggled to his feet, a look of shock and anger on his face.

"What have you done you fools!"  
There was no fear of the approaching Jedi, only anger at the interruption to his duel. Neither Mandalorian accompanying Jagi seemed fazed and they opened fire on Revan, years of scratching a living off of the pain of others on the Outer Rim having killed what sense of honor they possessed. Bypassing Jagi, Revan went for the two Mandalorians accompanying him and sliced vertically with his saber, cleaving the weapon of the nearest Mandalorian in two before slicing downward in the same motion. A move that bypassed the lightsaber-resistant protection of the Mandalorian's armor was struck and the first of Jagi's guards crumbled to the ground with a deathcry while his companion abandoned his blaster and pulled a vibrosword from his waist. Revan walked casually towards the Mandalorian, spinning his lightsaber as he all but bounced on his feet and he stopped within striking distance of the warrior, raising a brow in challenge. Distorted air rushed past Revan's head and struck the Mandalorian in the chest and Revan glanced over his shoulder to see Jagi, a smoking Mandalorian Ripper in hand aiming for the fallen guard's head. A second disruptor bolt whizzed harmlessly past Revan and struck the stunned guard in the center of his mask, melting through the armor and brutally smashing the head back into the sand with the force of the shot.

"Honor is not satisfied..."  
Jagi stated blankly, looking down at the pistol in his hand before he aimed it at his head and fired, dropping to the ground with a dull thump while Revan looked on, frowning at the lack of a challenge in it all. Mandalorians were normally harder to fight but Revan's execution of the first treacherous guard was done in a routine fashion, one Revan had adopted during the war to pierce the Mandalorian's protective armor with his lightsaber. Neither Mandalorian guard that had accompanied Jagi appeared to have the experience of fighting a Jedi and both had fallen like fodder, their lack of skill and honor apparent in those few short moments. Real Mandalorian warriors knew to protect the weak points in their armor.

"He's still alive..."  
Kaera Nurr stated, mostly to herself as Revan appeared to be staring at Jagi's corpse with a frown. Jagi had trusted the other Mandalorians to stick with tradition, but neither had been interested in honor, only credits and he had taken the honorable punishment for his weakness. The actions of allies was reflective of the actions of the warrior and Jagi had been blinded by a thirst for vengeance, uncaring or uninterested in his ally's sense of honor. Shaking off the unease he felt, Revan scanned the dunes for more threats before he moved to where Canderous lay, unmoving on the ground.

"I didn't see what he was hit with..."  
Revan stated slowly, almost embarrassed at missing the type of blast that had struck Canderous. Kaera sighed heavily, glancing up from the older Mandalorian's wound to frown at Revan.  
"A disruptor bolt... it's a miracle he's still alive."  
Grim-faced, Revan knelt beside his fallen companion, inspecting the burn carefully.

"We can't move him like this... We need shade and supplies..."  
Standing, Revan moved to the speeder and swoop bike that Jagi and his guards had taken to the battle circle, digging through the supplies until he found a passable medkit. Collecting the vibroswords of the fallen Mandalorians, Revan created a makeshift tent out of his and Kaera's cloaks and the weapons before he and the Jedi began working on saving Canderous' life.

"Is this also the Mandalorian way?"  
Kaera stated blandly nearly an hour later. The work on Canderous had been passed on in mostly silence, neither Jedi nor former Jedi speaking to one another except in regards to the wounded Mandalorian's life. Revan remained where he was, squatting in the sand and taking advantage of the shade their makeshift tent provided while he opened and closed his injured hand slowly, his brown eyes staring down at Canderous' face.

"Shut the Hell up."  
Revan said finally, his eyes flashing to glare at Kaera. The Jedi flushed slightly in anger before she suppressed the response and simply nodded. Conflict was to be avoided unless absolutely necessary, physical or verbal. The Jedi repeated the Code in her mind slowly to clear away the anger she felt at the barbaric Mandalorian duel she had just witnessed but it had not been easy. Neither Jedi nor deposed Sith Lord spoke to one another until night fell across the desert and Revan took off into the night alone, returning several minutes later with a comms jammer that had been on one of the dead Mandalorians.

"What the devil is that?"  
Kaera asked wearily, her communicator in hand and still filled with static. She had been adverse to moving Canderous in his condition without a ship and the proper supplies, both of which should have been a commline away, but the communicator had been unresponsive to her hails. Revan had not bothered speaking to the Jedi, instead trying his own communicator and sneering in mild annoyance when he found that it too was jammed.

"The reason our hails have gone unanswered."  
Revan stated in a blank, emotionless tone as he dropped the device into the sand, a flicker of lightning arcing from his fingertips to the device and effectively ending its functions. Seeing Kaera go for her communicator, Revan shook his head, a frown in place on his lips as he gazed off towards Anchorhead's glowing cityscape in the distance.

"Its no use, I've already tried. Czerka allows no spacecraft to function outside of the airways to orbit and will not grant permission for one casualty. Something about company liability... I'll take care of it as soon as the unfortunate Czerka Corp representative and I speak face to face."  
Revan clenched his hand into a fist angrily, wincing in pain as he pulled on his badly damaged hand. Growling in anger, the deposed Sith Lord stalked towards one of Jagi's men's speeders, glancing back to Kaera as he went.

"Protect him, I'm going to go commit some war crimes."  
Seeing the serious gleam in Revan's eyes, Kaera stood calmly, brushing off the sand from her robes and clearing her throat to gain Revan's attention.

"Perhaps it would be better if I went in your stead..."  
Calmly weighting the options, Revan shrugged and returned to keep vigil over Canderous.

"Very well."  
Surprised at how reasonable Revan was being and the complete lack of anger in his countenance, Kaera excused herself in the Jedi tradition and moved towards the swoop bike Revan had left running.

"May the Force be with you."  
Kaera droned out of habit, stopping dead in her tracks when she heard Revan's disgusted huff and response.

"May the Force serve you well."

Shuddering at the Sith's equivalent of the Jedi farewell, Kaera took off into the night, careful to keep her eyes on the scanner for any Tusken activity. By the time the Jedi reached the city walls, she realized the Force had been off when she had spoken to Revan. It only took a quick comm to Carth to discover that Bastila, her mother and the rest of the _Ebon Hawk's_ crew were long gone and that Carth was locked in a supply closet on her transport.

Gazing out at Tatooine, Revan chuckled to himself as he plotted a course for the neutral world of Manaan. The Jedi, Republic and Sith had no authority there and he could easily buy off the Selkath local government with the resources at his disposal. Never would he place his faith in a Jedi's word. Kaera would have betrayed their deal of neutrality simply through Jedi logic. It was necessary to lie when the very survival of the Jedi Order was at stake and Revan had made certain to cover his tracks well enough. Canderous as well as Bastila's mother could get the treatment they needed on Manaan. Canderous was too useful to let die and Bastila's loyalty would be assured once her father was laid to rest properly and her mother taken care of. The young rogue Padawan would soon have as little faith in the Jedi as he and then he could begin to mold her into the great and powerful apprentice she had the potential to be. Bastila would serve him in the end and he would not overstep his bounds with her loyalty as he had with Malak once he possessed it. She was too valuable to let slip away and he would never leave the Jedi another chance to destroy him. Soon Bastila would fully oppose the Jedi ways and be on her way to becoming his perfect apprentice. This was not possible so long as she thought like a Jedi. Jedi lie like the best and worse of politicians... and they are not to be trusted.

Bastila Shan sat beside her mother, frowning across the _Ebon Hawk's _ small medbay at Canderous' injuries. Juhani had taken the time to treat the Mandalorian, to her surprise and the rogue Padawan took the time to worry over her mother. Revan had promised to recover her father and he had, the holocron she held tightly in her hand was a testament to that and she unconsciously looked towards the cargo bay, where Revan had stored her father's corpse. Shivering slightly, the young woman let out a shuddering sigh as she tried to force herself to remember who and what Revan had been, what he still was if only in his own mind. A Sith... nay, a Lord of Sith and here she was; a Jedi on the run from the Order and Republic she had sword to uphold and protect simply because she valued the life of an enemy more than her oath. Closing her eyes, Bastila lowered her head to her mother's lap, starting slightly as a frail hand touched her head.

"Its alright my dear. Whatever it is... it will pass with time. Just let it go... let it go, Bastila."

Relaxing into her mother's embrace, Bastila closed her eyes and allowed her mind to calm itself. Revan was actively blocking the bond for multiple reasons and the Padawan slept well that night. Long after her daughter had fallen asleep, Helena Shan turned her blue eyes to the deposed Sith Lord standing in the doorway.

"I never did catch your name..."  
Revan glanced from Juhani to Helena. Taking advantage of his distraction, Juhani approached Revan's side, checking over his injury with a critical eye before frowning and pulling a scanner from a nearby tray. Grunting in pain, Revan cast a sour look towards the Cathar before he nodded appreciatively of the painkillers she quickly injected into his arm. Taking a seat, Revan turned his attention to Bastila's mother as Juhani tended to his injuries, mentally noting the Cathar's healing skills as he played around with what he felt comfortable revealing to Bastila's mother.

"You're a Mandalorian... I can tell that. You've got the look of one about you, but you've also got the look of a killer. From what I saw of your fight with those Dark Jedi on Tatooine as well as what I know about Jedi and the Force, I'd say you were a Sith as well. Oh don't look at me like you're surprised, you know I'm no fool and you know that man Onasi can't keep his mouth shut for the life of him. So, _Lord_ Revan. I think it is only fair that I ask you what your intentions are towards my daughter."

Wiping the look of surprise from his face, Revan allowed a small smirk to play on his lips before it turned to a genuine smile. He'd kill Carth Onasi the next time he saw him. Despite the dark thoughts, Revan was impressed and even felt a bit of respect for Helena's lack of fear and her straightforwardness.

"I want her to reach her full potential... and I want her to see things from my perspective."  
Helena Shan rolled her eyes wearily, not noticing Bastila's eyes open slowly as she listened to her mother and Revan converse.

"That is _not_ what I meant, young man. I saw the way you looked at her and if she and this motley little crew you've thrown together are willing to work with you, I know somewhere your intentions are... well pure would not be the word I'd use, but I suppose I'd say fair. I want to know what you plan to do with my little girl."  
Revan's expression went completely blank as he glanced at Juhani, noticing the Cathar had stopped working on his injury to listen.

"I need her... Its that simple. I need her to fix what was done to me by the Jedi, to recover the man I was from whatever damage they inflicted upon me. I admire her spirit, I admire her dedication to her beliefs and I respect her skill and strength. I don't seek to destroy her as a person, I don't seek to harm her... but if you are asking me if I can put her before myself... I suppose I could. Without her help, without the bond I share with her that she created when she chose to save my life, I am nothing. I feel no good or evil intent, I feel no emotions strongly and I feel little motivation. I think the Jedi that tried to wipe away my memories intentionally forced me to feel this way, to feel nothing so I would not be a threat to them. The memories give me a path that I can follow logically, but logic leads only to past decisions that through your daughter's eyes, through what I've felt through the bond are wrong on so very many levels that I... that I don't think I wish to be that man, be that way anymore..."

Revan frowned as he collected his thoughts, some part of his mind uncertain about what he was revealing, fearful of the implications even, but also knowing that the anger and disgust that he felt when not shared through the bond with Bastila was simply a memory of the emotion and not the actual emotion. The Jedi had gone into his mind and took away his ability to feel and while it might have been a blessing considering his crimes, Revan did not appreciate the Jedi interference.

"If you are asking me if I am willing to burn the galaxy again for your daughter... I'd have to say no. She wouldn't want that and regardless of how I see things in my mind's eye, I shouldn't... I won't be that... that _thing_ again. I- I destroyed my best friend's soul... I- I maimed him. I gutted him of his goodness and his loyalty and turned him into a rabid animal that I unleashed onto the galaxy. There is no honor in breaking an honorable man..."  
Memories of Malak flashed through Revan's mind and he looked honestly horrified. Even with the turmoil he was in, Revan knew it wasn't his feelings and he turned his eyes to Bastila's as the Padawan rose her head, unable to turn away from her gray, troubled eyes but also unnerved by what he saw in them. He saw what he had become in the end, the monster he had sought out to be to end the True Sith. The Sith'ari.

"Revan?"  
Bastila's soft, uncertain voice drew Revan from his inner turmoil and he twitched as he blinked at the Padawan. The Padawan wasn't seeing what he was, wasn't feeling what he was, but she had a small idea of what he was going through. Revan simply waved off the Padawan's concerns with a neutral expression as he bore the weight of his sins alone. They were his crimes and he wouldn't allow the blame to be shared. Honor wouldn't allow it. Without a word, Revan left the room, heading to the _Ebon Hawk's_ control room to check on their course.


	27. Chapter 26: Forced Confrontations

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"I think I've been rather generous to the Jedi Order since they labeled all of those who chose to uphold our oaths to protect the Republic criminals and traitors. They tried to imprison and kill us simply because we chose to take a stand against the Mandalorian onslaught at our very doorstep. If we are not to die on our knees, something had to be done. Exile from the Jedi Temple and all Enclaves I can accept. But I refuse to leave by myself... let alone quietly..."_

_"The Revanchist" to "Captain Malak" shortly before the Second Battle of Taris_

Chapter 26: Forced Confrontations

Golden eyes glowing in the darkness stared from shadowed figures. Armor gleamed in the darkness and the eyes of thousands of the demonic forms watched every move of the battle, waiting for one of the fighters to fail; to show weakness so that they might consume them. The dueling figures did not cease in their battle, grunts of pain and anger filling their throats as they fought on, muscles burning in strain. A shifting in the Force drew the eyes of all the Sith present and they turned to the intruder to their ancient domain, their eyes taking in the human they had looked upon with fear and awe.

"Lord Malak, what an unexpected pleasure."  
Uthar Wynn spoke calmly, ceasing his duel with his second in command and apprentice, Yuthura Ban. The violet-skinned Twi'lek followed suit with her Master and greeted the High Lord of the Sith with a simple bow, keeping her face expressionless. Any slight to Malak meant instant death and she was not one to flirt with such an unforgiving foe. Malak's breathing was even, barely audible in the depths of Korriban's Sith Academy and the Dark Lord stared at his underlings with disdain. They were all too weak for his tastes, too divided and greedy to see beyond to the big picture that he and Revan had painted. They were minions, grunts in the front lines and nothing more. Expendable weaklings, if not in body and powers than by their lack of imagination. They saw only the head of the academy as the epitome of power, not his seat and he could not be bothered to waste his time with them. Though it was easier to send them into the fray than dirty his own hands with things beneath his notice. Let Revan kill off those too weak for his regard as apprentice. Only those strong in body and mind could survive a confrontation with his old master.

"I require two of your strongest students. Bandon has proven too weak and incompetent to track down Bastila on his own."  
Uthar bowed and motioned to two of his best students. At least, the ones that had survived a week in the Sith's brutal training grounds. Malak's stone-gray eyes studied each student intensely before he nodded shortly, his mechanical voice as cold as his words.

"Feel free to kill Bandon, should the opportunity arise **after** you have found Bastila. He has failed to impress me for the last time..."

The two nameless Sith bowed and followed Malak to join Bandon's search for the elusive Bastila Shan and her companions. With hundreds of spies in the Republic's ranks and dozens within the Jedi Order, it was only a matter of time before the rogue Padawan resurfaced and these Sith joined Bandon just in time to learn of the Padawan's presence on Tatooine via an intercepted report from Kaera Nurr to the Jedi Council on Dantooine. Unlike Bandon, these Sith were wise enough to keep Malak informed of their progress.

"The Jedi are too close to the secrets of the Star Forge. There are only a handful of possibilities as to where this Kaera Nurr will go. Should she know the location of Bastila, you will intercept her immediately. Keep your attention focused on Manaan and Kashyyyk. Now leave me, I've no time for your continued presence."  
The Sith bowed to Malak, leaving to join Bandon while the Dark Lord of the Sith crossed his arms, gazing out upon Korriban's desolate surface.

"Send word to Admiral Mon Halan to bring his fleet here. The Dantooine Enclave has stood for too long against my will."  
Admiral Saul Karath bowed, carefully keeping his expression neutral. Malak would kill him in a heartbeat if he let out the slightest hesitation. Taris had proven that and he would remain behind on the _Leviathan_ while Malak joined Halan on the _Interceptor_ for the main assault on Dantooine and the Jedi there. A simple warning that he was valued as an officer, but not irreplaceable.

Revan stood stone-still, his arms crossed over his chest and his lips turned down into a frown as he watched Bastila and Juhani dueling with one another. Manaan had proved a welcome reprieve to the constant threat of the Jedi and Sith, the world's neutrality forcing both sides of the war to coexist without violence on the watery world. It didn't stop everything, but the harsh punishments for violations of the peace on Manaan had kept most of the Sith and Republic soldiers in check while the more powerful Force-users had been under orders from their Dark Lord or the Jedi Council to avoid conflict if at all possible.

Still, the reason for Revan's discomfort was the feeling of complacency. Peaceful was not a word he would use to describe Manaan, it was easy enough to sense the growing tension and anger on both sides being forced to coexist with the other. Manaan was a timebomb in Revan's mind, a place of importance to both sides, but one that could easily become unimportant, should it choose a side to favor in the war, or the Sith found an alternative to Kolto. A steaming ocean, filled with the boiled corpses of its former inhabitants after a planetary bombardment would be of no value.

Forcing his thoughts to the present, Revan watched Bastila and Juhani's forms carefully, silently impressed by their skills. Bastila was only using one of the blades on her saberstaff, her concentration completely focused on her opponent as she honed her saber skills with a fairly passable version of Ataru. Revan briefly noted a few elements from Makashi and Soresu, but knew that Bastila's style was better adapted to her staff, not a single blade. She appeared to realize this as she used a light Force-push against Juhani and flicked on the other end of her saberstaff. Immediately, the elements of the defensive Soresu form vanished, along with most of the dueling Makashi form and Revan absently noted Bastila's Ataru was practically flawless. With athletic motions only one trained in the Jedi or Echani arts could master, Bastila spun, practically dancing across the hangar bay as she assaulted Juhani, the humming of her blades breaking every so often in a hiss as her golden blades crossed with Juhani's sapphire.

Juhani's form reminded Revan of a Nexu, influences of Ataru and Djem-so; otherwise known as Shien were apparent, though she remained reserved in her motions, working strongly with Soresu to deflect Bastila's attacks. The Cathar lacked the brute physical strength Djem-so required, but made up for it with her athletic build. Revan noted her Ataru was strong, but was enhanced by the ferocity of Shien to throw her opponent off guard. Shifting styles, Juhani took the offensive, forcing Bastila to adapt her style or risk skewering herself on her own weapon. Two-handed Soresu was practically impossible with a staff and the Padawan was caught quickly off guard by a powerful, wide arc from Juhani's saber that the Cathar used shortly after a leaping somersault.

"A good duel."  
Bastila stated neutrally to Juhani, bowing her head slightly to her fellow rogue Jedi. Juhani returned the nod, taking a defensive stance and keeping her eyes focused on Bastila's form. The Padawan was good at attacking, but lacked a strong enough defense. On the other hand, Juhani's defense was so strong that she had the time she needed to gauge the weaknesses in Bastila's form and exploit them.

"How would either of you fare against Nimian and Juyo."

Bastila and Juhani turned their attention from one another to Revan, both eyeing the man's physique to judge his strengths in the styles, though Bastila's lingered longer than she would have liked, and for an entirely different reason. Revan was wearing only boots and a set of black pants, a red undershirt to his black robes was lying at the top of the pile he had made on a cargo crate when he stripped down to exercise in the hangar bay the _Ebon Hawk _occupied. His complaint at it being too humid had gotten rid of the odd looks he received from Bastila and Juhani for his actions, neither expecting him to be clad in anything less than a full set of battle robes and armor.

Juhani averted her eyes quickly from Revan after her initial inspection. Revan was tall, but not towering and his body was built for strength as well as agility, though it leaned more towards strength. Ataru was likely beyond Revan physically, as well as a good portion of Ataru, his broad shoulders and powerful build made him suited to Shien, but he also lacked the range of movements needed in a strong utilization of Soresu.

Bastila kept her attention forcefully focused on Revan's movements as he approached. His movements were strong and assured, though it was also apparent he was used to fighting or at least training in armor and he kept his motions restricted to a certain area. Bastila realized as he took an opening stance in Nimian with a red and blue saber in his left and right hand respectively that he was still suffering mildly from his recently healed hand injury.

"Perhaps you should forgo Nimian with your hand being in the condition it is..."

Bastila tried to keep the concern from her voice, but it was there regardless and Revan's eyes focused on her briefly, his face twitching in mild annoyance before he nodded and tossed one of his sabers to the crate where his armor and robes sat. The clank of the metal weapon on the boxes signified the start of the duel and Juhani moved to Revan's left while Bastila moved to his right, both females keeping their weapons in the opening strike positions of their favored forms.

Bastila's mind flashed back briefly to her confrontation with Darth Revan on his flagship when he took the opening stance for Juyo, but she quickly pushed the image out of her mind when she saw Revan take advantage of her distraction and lunge for Juhani. The Cathar blocked, her eyes widening at the speed and assurance in Revan's form. Juyo was an incomplete form, but apparently Revan had adapted a custom fighting style from the unfinished form to fill any holes the form left in his fighting style. Drawing on the Force to fuel his strikes, Revan kept his form restricted to a small area around his body, causing his distance from Juhani to be much closer than the Cathar was used to in a duel. It also breached her Soresu within seconds and the Cathar bowed out of the fight as Revan's blade crossed an opening across her chest, the blade scorching her robe, though its lowered intensity did no real harm to the clothing or the duelist.

Bastila found that in the time it took her to snap out of her daydream and close the distance towards Revan that he had already knocked Juhani out of the fight and was turning to meet her blades with a Soresu block. Seeing the brutal intensity and skill in Revan's style for the first time in those few short seconds he turned them on Juhani, Bastila unleashed a series of spinning strikes that kept Revan on the defensive and gave her the advantage. Unintentionally, Juhani immediately spotted one of Revan's weaknesses and it did not really surprise her given the sheet amount of scars she could see on Revan's bare torso. He lacked a strong defensive form, his Soresu was practiced, but weak and she saw quickly that Revan's form required surprise and speed to overcome a foe, not a long and drawn out duel that gave the opponents time to study each other's styles.

Revan was forced quickly into Ataru, having to use physical agility to break away from Bastila's furious assault and the Mandalorian-born former Jedi grinned as he rolled to the Padawan's right, quickly spinning and using an Ataru offensive move that Bastila barely blocked. Switching back to Juyo, Revan reformed his stance and struck, pushing the Padawan back until he was able to adopt a quick Makashi strike that disarmed the Padawan of her staff. Instead of conceding defeat, Bastila's face took on a stubborn expression as she lunged for her weapon, rolling to avoid Revan's quick counter, the Padawan called her weapon to her hand with the Force, spinning in mid-motion and coming to stand at Revan's back as he flew past her.

Revan shifted his weight, doing a quick rolling somersault as he turned and caught Bastila's strike, forcing a saber-lock. The Padawan held the lock for a split-second before she leaned back, allowing Revan's blade to pass her head before she returned to the offensive and pushed Revan's weakness. She had quickly realized Revan's defense form was lacking, as well as his agility in comparison to Juhani.

Revan kept his Juyo stance as he captured Bastila's strikes, his eyes focusing on her face instead of her hands as he watched her eyes seek a weakness in his stance. The two dueling humans were so close to each other that Revan could see his reflection in her eyes and he smirked as he spotted a weakness.

Shock filled Bastila's features as Revan casually reached out and grasped the center of her saberstaff. Instantly, her offensive was stopped as she found she could not overpower Revan and she watched as he used his free left hand to turn his saber towards her in a kill strike. A thought entered the Padawan's mind as she realized Revan's injured hand held his weapon and she used the Force to pushed out against Revan. Revan caught the Force-energy easily, nullifying its effect on him, though he had to release his grasp on Bastila's weapon and abandon the quick win.

Taking advantage of Revan's adapting stance, Bastila struck out hard with her saber, slamming the blade with all the strength she could muster into Revan's crimson blade. A look of surprise crossed Revan's face as he felt his healing wounds flare and he dropped his saber from his injured hand with a curse, finding that Bastila's saber was aimed at his throat, only a single end active. The Padawan's eyes were wide, almost equally surprised and she barely registered the feral smirk on Revan's face before a wave of Force energy slammed into her, lifting her up several feet into the air and sending her flying back while her weapon remained suspended in the air at the deposed Sith Lord's throat.

"You took advantage of a weakness, Bastila. I'm impressed."  
With an ease that almost frightened her, Bastila saw Revan call her weapon to his good hand, his left closing into a fist as he approached her. Invisible hands with more strength than her body could muster kept her trapped and Bastila watched as Revan leveled her own saber at her throat in a parody of her position moments before.  
"Yield."  
Revan said calmly, though his voice held a hint of amusement. With a sigh, Bastila complied, her body lowering gently to the ground as Revan eased his hold on her through the Force.

"Your Ataru is better than mine by far, Bastila. As your Soresu puts mine to shame, Juhani... I could never quite grasp the dependance on a saber when I fought others... part of the reason why Malak was the better swordsman in the end. You are both skilled, well-suited to your forms though you should work on your proximity defenses, Juhani and you on your Force-forms, Bastila."

Bastila and Juhani exchanged glances with one another before they both shed their outer tunics on their robes and took opening stances. A smile crossed Bastila's features and a smirk crossed Juhani's as both women turned their eyes to Revan.

"Care to try your luck again?"  
Bastila challenged, the strange look Revan gave her barely registering. The deposed Sith Lord frowned at Bastila, her smile causing his body to feel... strange. It was a beautiful sight to Revan and he found himself admiring the Padawan's sweat-covered features before he allowed his smirk to answer the challenge.

"You're a Jedi. You know there is no such thing as luck."

Kaera Nurr was beginning to debate the merits of the old Jedi saying about luck. As the Jedi Knight scanned the towering tree-trunks of Kashyyyk's massive forest and the dark, foreboding shadowlands she was surrounded by she truly, honestly believed in luck and that luck was most definitely against her. The Force was not a conscious entity, so it did not have the simple malicious intent that bad luck entailed. Surely there was some evil higher power working against her, against the Jedi Order and all it stood for to make a search for something Revan and Malak seemed to have found by accident so ridiculously difficult.

"I told you it wouldn't tell you anything..."  
The voice of the old outcast Jedi, Jolee Bindo drew Kaera's attention from the mechanical device attached to Kashyyyk's Starmap to the destroyed battle droids the thing seemed to spawn each time they tried to access the machine. The creature represented in the machine's hologram was similar in form to some of the worn statues she had found in the Dantooine and Tatooine ruins, not to mention it spoke the same language as the robot that guarded the Dantooine Starmap and Kaera ran a gloved finger over the machine, absently noting how out of place it was next to the Starmap. Someone had put the machine there, recently. More than likely it was meant to safeguard the Star Forge's location and it was doing an admirable job. Wishing she had brought a droid along instead of Carth, Kaera turned from the device, absently tossing a Force-push over her shoulder in disgust. The device was heavily shielded and it would do nothing, but she didn't care. She had fought through not only a small army of Mandalorian raiders and the native wildlife of Kashyyyk, but also several Dark Jedi dispatched to guard the Starmap's location as well as a Terentatek. A Kriffin Terentatek. As if Dark Jedi, hostile natives and wildlife and a half legion of Mandalorian warriors wasn't enough, one of Exar's mutated Rancor had to make an appearance.

_"I see a Jedi has made their presence known..."_

Kaera froze, her eyes widening in surprise. Turning, the Jedi locked eyes with Revan, or rather a hologram of Revan in his Sith robes and armor. The mask showed nothing of the man's face, though it was clear the hologram was amused.

_"Don't look so surprised... If Alec and I could find the Starmaps so easily, its undoubtable that a Jedi would follow in our tracks at some point. Take this small piece of advice with you, Jedi. Run and hide, keep your powers suppressed and disappear. The Sith are rising from untold millennia of violent conquests on the edge of known space and they bay for the blood of the Jedi, of the Republic that killed those they left behind on Korriban and Ziost. I have seen them, I have fought and killed them and I tell you now that if you are lucky enough to survive what they unleashed upon the galaxy to forget the Star Forge. They want their Empire back and those that tried to drive their race to extinction punished likewise. I can't say I can blame them for their sentiment after what I did to my followers... to my own people, but take this advice with you, Jedi. In the galaxy that is to come, if what my visions tell me are true; where Jedi gather, Jedi die. Disperse, survive. It's the best you can really hope for..."_

The hologram cut out, the pre-recorded transmission ending with an ominous warning from Darth Revan of the emergence of the True Sith. Having known to a degree of Revan's motives behind his betrayal of the Republic, Kaera and Carth were not so surprised by the hologram's message though Jolee looked a bit put off.

"It looks like I left the Jedi Order at the right time... Hell I thought what Exar Kun did was bad, but if that kid is right and the True Sith are returning..."  
Jolee shuddered slightly, knowing that a fraction of Ancient Sith knowledge had been used by Exar Kun to destroy the Cron Star Cluster and that if a fleet of warships held similar weapons, or even a few of the destructive devices that the galaxy was doomed. Kaera glanced at Carth, seeing a look of annoyed understanding in the man's eyes and briefly she found herself respecting his abilities. He'd fought well against the Terentatek and Mandalorians for someone so lacking in Force-potential and he knew what was going to come next even before she did.

"We have to find Revan."  
Carth stated, looking as if he had just tasted something sour. Kaera nodded grimly, a look of uncertainty on her face. She had seen the extent of Revan's endurance and power on Tatooine and while it was not god-like, it was certainly more than she and Carth could handle. A brief glance towards the newest addition to her party drew a thoughtful expression to her features. With Jolee's help, they might be able to subdue Revan, or in the very least gain his attention before he had time to kill them outright. He might be adverse to helping unlock the Kashyyyk Starmap under the right circumstances and with the right incentive and Kaera knew precisely where Revan's interests lay. With a young Padawan who's loyalty he was trying very slowly, but surely to sway away from the Jedi Order and to him.

Two weeks on Manaan passed without incident. Trying to keep a low profile, Revan was adverse to wearing his armor and took to wearing simple black Jedi robes. He spent most of the time training with Juhani and Bastila to improve all of their skills as well as checking on Canderous and Bastila's mother at the medical facility in Ahto city.

"If you only use a saber, or only use the Force, you leave yourself weak. You rely too much on the weapon or the power, and your body can fail you. Why do you think so many Sith are so disfigured from Darkside use? They push their bodies further than they should, channel too much power and it eats away at them. I did that for a time myself, but I have since learned that balance is the key. A balance between skill, strength, speed, power and the tools available to you."  
Juhani and Bastila stood side-by-side, both unarmed aside from their skills in the Force while Revan circled them, his eyes taking in their stances. He wanted Bastila as an apprentice to replace Malak, she had the connection to him already that a decade of friendship and training had instilled in Malak and the Bond made them that much more reliant on one another. Juhani, he would only counsel as a student. A student is far from an apprentice and while the Cathar had potential, Revan was not there to train her as his equal, his partner as he would Bastila. Juhani was a good subject, like Aven Sek'tai had been and he would not make the mistake of having more than one apprentice. While he had a measure of trust in Bastila and Juhani, the techniques and methods he planned to use to train the two would pit them against not only each other, but also himself. Alone, an apprentice is only that, but with another at their side, an apprentice of the Sith would see an advantage and take it. Malak had not done so, as he was Revan's only apprentice, but Sion and Nihilus had done so to Traya, of that Revan was absolutely certain.

"Attack one another in hand-to-hand combat."  
Revan ordered, surprised that the two rogue Padawans listened to him so promptly. A light spar took form before Revan's eyes, Cathar and Human perfecting their martial arts forms and showing great improvements in the weeks since Tatooine. Unconsciously, Revan flexed his healed left hand, awaiting the moment to strike.

"React as you would were this a real battle."  
Revan warned before he charged into the fray, a crimson-bladed lightsaber active in his hand as he lunged for Juhani. The Cathar moved out of his way, unconsciously drawing on the Force to move faster than a Force-blind would have been able and Revan took the reaction as an invitation to unleash his own Force-powers. That was until Bastila struck him across the face with a boot. Stumbling, Revan glanced at the Padawan, seeing that she was helping Juhani in the fight and he smirked as he tossed his weapon to the Cathar.

"There are no alliances here. Only the winner and the dead."  
A low-intensity lightsaber struck Bastila as Juhani took advantage of the weapon and the Padawan sighed, stepping back from the fight as she watched Revan assume a Mandalorian martial arts stance. Revan quickly side-stepped Juhani's thrust, not even bothering to use the Force as he lightly backhanded the Cathar and tossed the weapon aside. A thin tendril of Force-lightning shot from his index finger and into Juhani's chest, shocking the Cathar but doing little more than reprimanding her for her lack of imagination.

"You had the right idea at first, to take on the stronger threat together, but you allowed opportunity to cloud your judgement of the future of the battle. I was the greater threat, armed and stronger physically as well as in terms of raw Force-power but you had the weapon and you assumed it was all you would need. The Force can be your foe as easily as it is your ally. A lightsaber is merely an extension of your own abilities, not the height of them."  
Juhani nodded, pushing aside her frustration as she called her own weapon to her hand. Revan had won all of the mock-fights they had in the two weeks since he had started training with her and Bastila and while it was disheartening, Juhani was beginning to see the subtleties in Revan's style, the almost mathematical precision he placed in each movement. It was almost as if his strength in the Force gave him foresight of the battle, but Juhani knew better. Revan was a trained warrior and veteran of more battles than she would likely see in her lifetime and she knew that kind of skill was not from just training, but also experience. The training itself served as a means of exercise and helped to maintain all of their powers and abilities, but Juhani realized there was also a window of opportunity to get to know the man who had saved her from a life of slavery and pain on Taris years before.

"Alec was always better with a blade. The only reason I won our duels was because he was weaker in raw Force-power than I and less skilled. If Malak ever took the time to hone his skills... His swordsmanship alone would likely be the end of me if we faced one another..."  
Revan had taken to speaking of Malak often, referring to his former friend and apprentice as his given name and his Sith name at times. It surprised Juhani that he seemed so reminiscent in his tone, speaking almost respectfully of Malak's skill with a lightsaber. Seeing that Bastila was not finished with the training, Juhani bowed out silently, knowing that Revan had taken more of an interest in the Padawan's skills than her own. It had bothered her briefly at first, but Juhani understood the bond between the two made their duels and training that much more difficult. It was not only a test of skill and strength between Revan and Bastila, but also of body and mind. Hiding her jealously, Juhani crept past the two, spotting Mission sitting on a cargo crate with Zalbaar nearby. The two had taken to watching the duels when Manaan had lost its appeal and Juhani smirked slightly at the bored expression on the young Twi'lek's face.

"Want to get some food and catch the swoop race, Mission?"  
At the mention of food, Zalbaar perked up and growled his wish to join Juhani while Mission snapped out of her daze and turned her head from Revan and Bastila to stare at Juhani.

"Huh?"  
The Twi'lek looked confused a moment before she ran the question through her head and brightened slightly.

"Sure, it'd be a lot better than sitting around here waiting on those two. I swear-"  
Mission glanced past Juhani to see Bastila storming onto the _Ebon Hawk _while Revan approached them, a look of annoyance on his face.

"I'll come as well. Bastila is being difficult for some reason or another."  
Mission snorted at Revan's ignorance. He walked around without a shirt on them they trained and after hours of watching his muscles movements she could understand Bastila's frustrations. Jedi weren't allowed to have relationships after all and the Padawan was fighting with a lifetime of training and the urge to give in to her attraction towards Revan. Obviously the clueless man was a convenient target for her frustrations and with such a sharp tongue, Mission knew that Bastila would give Revan Hell more often than not for things beyond his control or understanding.  
"She's probably just concerned about her mother."  
Juhani stated neutrally, the real reason for Bastila's frustration not lost on her. If anything, Juhani understood it only too well. Revan was at the peak of physical perfection for a human of his age and while a human's sense of smell was not as powerful as a Cathar's, Juhani could not ignore Bastila's reaction to Revan's pleasant scent during their duels.

"You'd better get cleaned up if you wanna come with us, bub. I don't want to smell your sweat all day."  
Revan frowned at the Twi'lek, glancing down at his bare chest before shrugging and heading towards the _Ebon Hawk _to make quick use of the fresher. Juhani rolled her eyes as she followed, hoping that Bastila would be finished with the women's fresher in a sane amount of time.

Kaera Nurr glanced at the Jedi that stood in the landing bay of the Republic cruiser to greet her. There were four in total and she knew each of them by reputation as well as their status within the Jedi Order. Nomi Sunrider stared at Jolee Bindo in mild shock before she covered up her surprise, though a small smile showed on her face while Atris and Kavar of the Coruscant High Council flanked Nomi. To the back of the group stood a Jedi that Kaera had not expected and she frowned as she studied the human Master.

"Master Sunrider, Master Kavar, Master Atris."Kaera bowed to each in turn before she settled her eyes on the final Jedi present and bowed.

"Master Quatra. It is good to see you recovered."

Juhani's former Jedi Master offered a small smile, bowing her head in acknowledgment as she greeted Jolee and Carth as they stepped off of the transport.

"We'll be landing shortly at the Republic Embassy on Manaan. As we didn't want to arouse suspicion amongst the Sith, we are posing as a diplomatic envoy from the Jedi Order to petition for an increase in our kolto shipments. As the Order is a separate entity from the Republic, but an ally, it makes sense that we would travel by means of Republic cruiser."  
No one questioned Atris' explanation and the Jedi Librarian studied Kaera closely before she frowned.

"You have been in the presence of a great darkness. I can see it in your aura."  
Nomi rolled her eyes, glancing at Atris in annoyance.

"No-one is perfect, Atris. Perhaps you should take that saying to heart before you judge others so harshly. Though... you are correct, Knight Nurr has been in sustained contact with a Dark Jedi."  
A brief glance filled with concern was exchanged between Jolee and Nomi before the famous Jedi Master saw no danger within Jolee's aura.

"I was forced to work alongside Revan on Tatooine. He was accompanied by both Padawans Shan and Juhani and I was under the impression that neither was under duress to be with him."  
Worried looks were exchanged between the Jedi before Kaera continued.

"Revan was outwardly hostile to the Jedi Order but kept his word to work with me on Tatooine. He had a... personal matter to attend to and somehow Bastila's family was involved. Padawan Shan's mother was afflicted with a rare illness that can only be properly treated on a few worlds. Manaan is one, Coruscant, Corellia and Alderaan are the only others I know outside of Sith space where such treatment can be found. The Mandalorian, Canderous Ordo who accompanied Revan was also severely injured so it makes sense that Revan would seek a means to heal his ally and safeguard Bastila's loyalty by finding treatment for her mother. Manaan is the most logical choice as it is neutral and open to all organizations and sentients so long as they follow the world's laws."  
Nomi nodded her agreement while Kavar frowned in concern.

"Revan was hostile, you say?"  
Kaera nodded, explaining Revan's erratic behavior on Tatooine.

"I... also have news of your daughter... News you should probably ask Revan himself..."  
All of the Jedi present winced at the shifting of power in Nomi Sunrider's aura at the mention of her daughter. The Jedi Master knew her daughter was dead, having sensed her departure, but none knew how. Kaera had only heard in passing from Bastila that Revan had told her Vima Sunrider was dead, but the details of the famous Jedi's demise remained a mystery to those outside of Revan's party and the murderer himself.

"Then we should speak to him as soon as possible."  
Atris interjected, casting a sharp glance towards her fellow Jedi Councillor. Nomi said nothing, merely closing her eyes and sighing slightly before she gave a single nod of assent. She couldn't dwell on her daughter's death, not now, not ever.

Revan twitched as he stepped off of the _Ebon Hawk, _his brown eyes scanning the landing bay warily before he turned back to tell HK to stand guard and for T3 to be extra vigilant. The Force was off, unbalanced and Revan did not like the feeling. Stepping out of the _Hawk_ before Bastila could launch into another angry argument over his training methods, Revan nodded to Juhani and stepped into the corridor leading from the spaceport to the city entrance. The Selkath had made certain all visitors were filtered through only a handful of checkpoints to keep track of any offworlders or diplomats.  
A violet-skinned Twi'lek limped along the corridor of Ahto city towards his docked spaceship. Grunting in pain at the injury given to him nearly a decade before, Xor spotted something that gave him pause. A Cathar, as well as a young Twi'lek girl and a Wookiee in the presence of a human. Sneering in disgust, the former Mandalorian mercenary approached the human, eyeing the Cathar with a predatory look.

"How much for the Cathar? Its been a while since I've had one."  
In Xor's mind, the other man was either a Mandalorian or a Sith. The armor and weapons were obvious of that and no Sith or Mandalorian associated with Cathar, Twi'lek and Wookiee unless they were a slaver. Manaan was a commerce planet and while slavery was illegal within the Republic, Manaan was neutral ground and a nice place to pick up some prime cargo. After scratching a living off of smuggling spice through Sith and Republic blockades for the better part of five years, Xor was looking to get back into the slave trade. He already had a few promising contacts on Nar Shaddaa as well as a few of the local Sith. Starting with a Cathar as a slave seemed proper. It was part of the reason he'd joined the Mandalorians and Cassus Fett when they burned the feline race's world to ashes and ravaged what remained of their population. The human turned to Xor and eyed the Twi'lek with a searching look.

"She's not for sale."  
Revan stated simply, something about the man before him triggering a memory. The look Juhani was giving the man was enough for Revan to know violence was already the most likely outcome of the confrontation, but he hoped to keep a low profile while on Manaan and side-stepped the issue.

"She's that good, huh? I remember I had a few of them myself on Taris years ago. Had to put down the male one though, but the females! Ha! Feisty enough to keep it interesting. What about the girl?"  
Mission looked disgusted and slightly afraid as Xor turned his attention to her and a growl from Zalbaar caused Xor to back away before what he said finally sank in to Juhani's head. The man had the exact same scent as the one who'd murdered her father, raped and tortured her mother as well as her. A look of fury crossed the Cathar's features as she stared at the crippled Twi'lek with wide, disbelieving eyes. Of all the creatures, of all the despicable monsters to come across she had never thought, hoped to see his face again. A lightsaber was in her hand before she knew it and she approached the crippled slaver, her body trembling with the sheer force of her rage while a group of distant figures watched on in silence, their robes obscuring their identities.  
"What did you just say!?"

Juhani felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to look at Revan's blank face. The deposed Sith Lord forcefully pulled Juhani back to stand beside him.

"They aren't my slaves. They're my... friends."  
The word seemed to fit in Revan's mind and he locked his eyes briefly with Juhani, silently pleading with her to back down.  
"Hey wait a second. I remember you! You're that bitch I used to own on Taris aren't you? Well she's my property and I'm taking her back."  
Xor reached a hand out to take hold of Juhani and was immediately pinned to the wall by a furious Wookiee. Prepared to rip Xor limb from limb for his insinuations towards his friends, Zalbaar was stopped by Revan's voice.

"Its been a long time, Xor."  
The Twi'lek looked surprised for a moment before a smug expression crossed his face. He could see the Mandalorian markings on the armor Revan wore and it didn't quite sink in that Revan was the same man who had crippled him years before.

"We met on Taris as well. I even had my eye on this Cathar for a while, looks like I got her in the end. I didn't have to resort to your honorless methods either."

The blank tone in Revan's voice served as warning enough, but the threat; nay the promise of death still had not sunk in to Xor's mind.

"Not all of us who fought alongside the Mandalorians fought for honor and glory. Some of us wanted credits, wanted what we could take from the conquered worlds and we were tough enough that they let us do what we wanted, so long as we stayed out of their way. You go soft on me, Mandalorian?"  
Revan's answer was simply a smirk as pressed a hand to Xor's shoulder in what seemed like a gesture of camaraderie. A faint clicking noise was indiscernible in the background noise from the corridor, but Revan accomplished his goal and leaned in to whisper to Xor's ear.

"I never went soft."  
Without another word, Revan gestured to the others to move, waiting until they began walking down the hallway before he left Xor's side. The slaver smirked as he watched Revan depart, calling after him.

"Its good to see you keep your _friends_ in line. Maybe we can talk business later!"  
Revan waved over his shoulder and carefully removed the glove he used to touch Xor's shoulder, tossing it into a trash receptacle along with his other as he shuddered. Juhani was trembling in anger, tears of pain at the memories of her treatment and the crimes done to her and her family coming back to her. Only Revan's silent plea for her to remain calm, which had echoed in her mind briefly when he touched her shoulder had stopped her from pouncing on Xor and ripping him to shreds and the Cathar waited until the slaver was out of sight before she rounded on Revan furiously.

"I cannot allow him to live after what he's said- what he did to me and my family! He must die, Revan."  
Revan saw Mission cast a wary, but understanding glance towards Juhani while Zalbaar grimly growled his agreement with Juhani. He'd been a slave as well and held no sympathy for Xor. Revan allowed his disgust to show as he twitched in silent fury.

"He will pay. I've made sure of it."  
The looks he received were confused, but Revan smirked as he held out a small tracker, a pulsing indicator showing Xor's position. He'd taken the opportunity during his gesture of camaraderie with Xor to plant a tracking device on the slaver and Revan calmly relayed a message for HK-47 to capture Xor as well as his ship and all its stocks, meet up with the Revanchist Sith in orbit around Roon and take his time torturing the fool.

"HK will show Xor the full hospitality of the Sith. I'm sure my friend Aven will also like a stab at Xor, but his life is in your hands, Juhani and I leave the end of his misery to come in your hands."  
Remembering Canderous' explanation of the Sith they'd med on Nar Shaddaa still loyal to Revan, Juhani calmed slightly, though she was still enraged at the thought of Xor being alive and free for a moment longer.  
"Go on and take your mind off of such things, all of you. I'll instruct HK on how to proceed."  
Juhani, Mission and Zalbaar left quietly while Revan turned, relaying a command to HK via his communicator to meet up with Xor before he spotted movement. Tensing, Revan glanced around him as four robed figures closed around him, surrounding him, but making no offensive moves. There was no violence allowed in this part of Manaan, that was part of the reason Revan had restrained the others as well as himself, but Revan knew not all attacks were visible to scanners and security cameras. Especially when it concerned the four figures surrounding him. In turn, starting from a figure clad in white and ending in one glad in pale green, the Jedi Masters pulled back their hoods, revealing themselves to Revan.  
"Atris. Kavar. Quatra. Nomi."  
Revan said each Master's name calmly, though his body could feel the pressure of Force energy closing in around him. He couldn't win a fight alone against four seasoned Jedi Masters, let alone three of the most powerful and skilled Jedi within the entire Order. The approach of Kaera Nurr as well as a Jedi he recognized from his brief stay on Kashyyyk after the Mandalorian Wars and after he discovered the Star Forge caused Revan to roll his eyes in annoyance. Three High Councillors was likely enough to subdue him, but adding a Jedi Master, a Jedi Knight and a Gray Jedi with Senior Padawan's training was just excessive.  
"Old Man. I remember the Wookiees telling me stories about you when I was on Kashyyyk. I never though you'd leave your little exile there, especially for a Jedi."  
Jolee Bindo frowned at the young man before him. The kid was strong in the Force, almost ridiculously so and he held himself like a seasoned warrior. His voice was similar to the Mandalorians that stalked Kashyyyk's shadowlands and he was wearing a mixture of crimson Mandalorian armor and black Jedi robes. Given the build of the man, Jolee mentally added a mask and recalled the hologram with the warning Kaera had inadvertently unlocked in the lower Shadowlands and he frowned at the reading he got from the man's aura.

"I'm just curious about that message you left on Kashyyyk, kid. I have nothing to do with the Jedi or the Sith, or their war. I left that behind me a long time ago."  
Jolee and the others were surprised by the sneer on Revan's face.

"You're a coward then. Make the choice of which side you are on, old man. Before you have it made for you."

Jolee stiffened in surprise at Revan's tone, glancing at Nomi and seeing that she had not taken her eyes from Revan, as if she did not trust him not to make a move for his weapon. They weren't there to fight, that much Jolee knew, but the man before him looked about ready to fight, or at least make a run for it.

"Enough of this."  
Atris' cultured voice cut through the anger in Revan's mind and caused him to refocus it on her.

"You tried to kill me, Atris. I haven't forgotten that."  
Revan moved a step towards Atris, ignoring the brief start in the Jedi as she took a step back before she frowned in annoyance and stood her ground.

"I'll not be bullied or threatened by you, Revan. Your darkness has corrupted enough or the Order. We are here for Padawan Shan and Padawan Juhani."

Revan backed down from Atris, crossing his arms over his chest as he glanced briefly at Kaera. The Jedi Knight looked away, knowing she'd been lucky to survive an encounter with Revan when he was partially deranged, wounded and suffering from exhaustion on Tatooine.

"And if they chose to stay with me, instead of returning to be your slaves?"  
Revan's voice was calm, diplomatic and Nomi closed her eyes, trying to fight off the anger she felt at Revan's behavior. When the famous Jedi Master opened her eyes, she was startled to see Revan staring at her. Recovering quickly, the Jedi asked the question that had been plaguing her for nearly a month since her daughter's disappearance.

"What happened on Nar Shaddaa, with Vima?"  
Try as she might, Nomi could not keep the tremor from her voice and Revan uncrossed his arms, glancing to the ground before meeting her eyes.

"You saw Xor?"  
Revan asked, seeing the Jedi nod. Sighing, Revan explained to Nomi what happened to her daughter in as subtle a way as he could.

"What an unrestrained, angered Sith Lord is going to do to him is what happened to your daughter. She was sent alone into an army of Dark Jedi trained for the sole purpose of killing or disabling other Force-sensitives. She was captured, tortured and stripped of her dignity as well as-"  
Revan turned his head down again, ashamed at the actions of a soldier trained by him, one that was supposed to have been loyal to him. Atton Rand would pay for his actions someday, but until that time, he was the one who would answer for the Sith, he was the one to blame.  
"She met her end with the serenity and peace of a Jedi Master. She is one with the Force, Master Sunrider."  
Nomi closed her eyes, allowing the hands that fell to her shoulders to comfort her before she fell into Jolee's embrace, unable to deal with the emotions passing through her at that moment rationally, she left with the self-outcast Jedi and moved down the corridor, were she let out a cry of pain and sorrow, the noise drawing the attention of a few passer-bys before they moved on, ignoring the problems of a stranger. Revan noted the reactions with disgust, turning his attention back to the three Jedi Masters and the single Jedi Knight surrounding him. With a coldness that surprised even him, Revan allowed a smirk to cross his face as Nomi and Jolee disappeared down a corridor for some privacy.  
"Two down, four to go."


	28. Chapter 27: Darth Malak, Lord of Destruc

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"I maimed my apprentice because he questioned my strength... A lack of strength is weakness, but to question the strong is also weak. I lost control of nothing and I saw only betrayal where betrayal was spawned. I... became an instrument of revenge. The strong survive and the weak perish. I live, I am whole... My Apprentice is alive only because I wish it. He suffers now not from ignorance of my strength, but because of his own weakness. What came out of that healing tank was not Alec, but a tool molded of pain and suffering; fit only to spread its misery upon the galaxy. Whatever fire, whatever spirit Alec once had is gone now and I see no betrayal in Darth Malak's eyes. He is loyal now and will be a fitting tool to fight my wars. Let that be a lesson to all as to who you take your orders from, or you can share Malak's fate. I do not forgive weakness."_

_~Holographic recording of Darth Revan, the Lord of Revenge broadcast after reports of an uprising in the ranks of the Sith Leadership by his apprentice, Malak~_

Brief Author's Note: Revan can't die just yet, but neither can the Jedi he's fighting if the story for KOTOR II is to be... recognizable. Took some brainstorming, but I hope it doesn't disappoint.

Chapter 27: Darth Malak, Lord of Destruction

Dantooine hung in the backdrop of space, fields of tan and violet grass coloring the planet's surface, mixed between patches of blue and turquoise water. On the bridge of the _Oppressor_, Darth Malak stood with his arms crossed, glaring down at the world. Forty Sith Interdictors with two dozen lighter escort craft bore down on the world, a small fleet by galactic standards but more than enough to deal with a single Republic base, several sentry ships and perhaps a small compliment of Jedi Fighters. At least if the Sith ships kept their distance from the Dantooine Jedi Enclave. Jedi were known to... pull ships from the sky from time to time, especially the stronger ones that still had an imagination and while the lives of his underlings meant next to nothing to Malak, he wasn't going to go out of his way to conduct a foolish battle. Revan had taught him enough of war to make Malak a competent commander, if not a military genius.

"Ignore the towns and farms, target the Republic station and ships first, deal with the Jedi as they come."  
Malak's mechanical voice rumbled low, carrying with it the weight of the Sith Empire and the Sith obeyed, four interdictors rushing ahead of the fleet and breaking off into two groups to assault the two Republic cruisers that protected the base. Sith fighters launched from the main fleet swarmed forward, locking in deadly skirmishes with what few the Republic could throw back at them.

"They fight to the last. No prisoners."  
Malak's voice was emotionless, lacking any inflection of guilt or anger and the battle continued for several minutes before the Jedi finally mounted an offense. Malak watched the numbers of Sith fighters decrease sharply for several minutes before superior numbers won out against superior skill and the Jedi fell to Sith blasters. Unconcerned, Malak reflected on the difference of his war... _Revan's_ war and the Mandalorian's. In the Mandalorian wars the Republic soldiers would have broken in terror and fled to hide amongst the general population. Mandalorian resolve... also known as thermonuclear bombs quickly put an end to such cowardice and Malak could almost see what Revan had meant by the power of fear. Fear had exposed the truth to the Republic, that the strong, the Sith were to be faced and fought to the last, or joined. Revan had wanted the show the Republic, show the Jedi there was no place to hide and they were fighting all the more desperately because of it. Malak could appreciate that desperation, had partaken in such desperation himself and without a second glance at the battle, Malak turned and stalked to the hangar of the small fleet's flagship. Two dozen Sith troopers and eight Dark Jedi of... admirable strength flanked Malak and entered a heavily modified and armored transport. Seventy nine other transports from the fleet broke from the hangars and began their approach towards Dantooine's surface, the familiar fields just outside the Jedi Enclave coming into view before they began to drop from the sky, an invisible hand swatting the Sith vessels away. Malak drew on the Force, reflecting the attempts of the Jedi below to disrupt his forces with considerable ease while the other Dark Jedi present fought off the Jedi's attempts to drag them all down to fiery deaths.

As Sith fighters tore past the transports, some being thrown against one another or to the ground by the Force, Darth Malak turned his golden eyes to the stasis pods lining his transport before he drew his own saber from his belt and stood.

"Bring as many Jedi as you can back here. Sedate them, knock them unconscious, dismember then, whatever you wish to do, just bring them back here _alive_."  
The other Sith all lowered their heads in acknowledgment of Malak's orders and the Dark Lord of the Sith turned to the landing ramp of the transport, preparing himself to enter the fray. Battle was his only escape from the horrors of his own mind these days and Malak reveled in the feel of his weapon in his own hand. He would strike down many Jedi today, but they wouldn't die. They'd merely feed his already enormous power.

Revan twitched as he glanced away from the Jedi surrounding him to an approaching figure. Frowning, Revan tensed as Bastila approached and saw the confusion on the young woman's face before she caught sight of the faces of those surrounding Revan and an interesting mixture of shock, fear and anger flickered over her beautiful features. Staying his hand, Revan waited for the rogue Padawan to either join him, or fall back into the routine she had been a slave to all her life.

"Step away from him, now!"  
Revan's brow lowered and his left eye twitched in surprise, his mouth dropping open slightly as the Padawan bodily pushed past the four Jedi surrounding Revan to literally place herself in the way of the danger they posed. Uncertain of what exactly the Hell just happened, Revan tried to keep the smirk from his face as he took in the disbelieving and horrified stares of the Jedi around him.

"Ba- Bastila! You- you can't have fallen!"  
Atris looked properly horrified at the thought of the Jedi Order's only defense against Malak's impossibly large fleet defecting and Kavar, while more reserved looked no less horrified at the possibility. Anger crossed Bastila's young face as she glared at the Masters around her.

"I chose to protect Revan's life, to bring him back from the brink of death and you, Masters betray your oaths as Jedi and try to murder him. You violated his mind on such a level that I am sickened to have called myself a Jedi. And don't you try to deny it! I have seen Revan's mind, have seen why he became what he was and while I cannot agree completely with some of his... decisions, I can most certainly agree with him on one thing. You are not to be trusted, Masters."  
Bastila's voice was filled with more disgust that anger by the end of her speech, revulsion clear in her eyes as she glared at Atris and the Echani Master swallowed back whatever scathing retort she wanted to throw at Bastila, knowing it would not help and also knowing that Bastila was necessary if the Republic wished to survive Malak's Sith.

"You knew what he was- know what he is, Bastila. He was too dangerous to be kept- to remain a threat. I chose to- to remove the threat but preserve his life. What other choice did we have? He was a Dark Lord of the Sith!"

A crimson blade slashed through the temperate Dantooine morning air, flicking aside an azure beam and slicing cleanly into the chest of its owner. A scream of pain from the Jedi was quickly silenced as two Sith troopers moved past Malak and restrained her, injecting her with a sedative and hauling her back to the transport. Malak continued on alone, his movements deadly and graceful, powerful and precise. Five Jedi, a combination of Masters and older Knights stood ahead of him and Malak approached, swatting away the Jedi's attempts to stop him through the Force as if they were merely insects.

"You cannot hope to win against all of us by yourself, Sith Lord."  
One of the Masters, Malak was dimly aware that it was his own former Jedi Master Zhar Lestin, said. Zhar's voice was assured and his faith in the Force granted him comfort and confidence in such a dark hour. Malak merely stared at the Twi'lek Jedi before glancing at the other four that flanked him, all as confident in their skills as they were in the Force. The only problem was, the Force was with Malak at that moment and none of the Jedi seemed to realize it.

"It doesn't matter if I win. It only matters that I fight."  
Malak's mechanical tone took out any emotion, any inflection the sound of his voice would have once carried and his eyes only gave a glimpse of hatred and disgust as he spoke words his old Sith Master had once spoken to the Jedi High Council. Malak knew he would win because he was the strong one, the one willing to fight while the Jedi, any Jedi had a preference for peace. Peace was a weakness, a time when complacency made one's skills less sharp, one's goals less tangible.

"You don't have to do this, my old Padawan. Revan is no longer in control of the Sith-"  
Malak cut Zhar off with an annoyed look crossing what was left of his face.

"Revan was never in control of the Sith, only the Jedi he converted to his cause."  
Zhar was surprised by that and didn't catch the movement of his former apprentice until the last moment, barely saving his own life as he deflected Malak's lightsaber away from his chest. The crimson blade still drew along Zhar's shoulder and the Jedi Master grunted in pain, rolling away to recover while Malak turned into his strike, continuing in the direction of one of the Jedi who had been flanking Zhar. The Jedi Knight's body dropped to the ground, his face pained as he clutched at the gash running along his chest. Malak did not stop, Zhar noted as the blade turned to slash across his own abdomen. Pain filled the Dantooine Councillor's being before it dimmed to a haze of delirium as another Jedi fell under Malak's blade, wounded but not dead. A sudden clarity filled Zhar as his eyes widened. Malak was taking prisoners, taking Jedi to be tortured and turned.

A limb, what was once the hand of an Arkanian dropped, followed by the leg and Zhar struggled to move past the agony in his body to fight, to resist if nothing else but Malak's skills with a saber and his strength in the Force had left no true doubt in Zhar's mind of who would win. He wasn't a particularly powerful Jedi, merely knowledgeable and he had never been much of a fighter. His dedication to teaching and his unshakable belief in the Jedi teachings had elevated him to a Council seat on Dantooine and while the Jedi with him were strong, Malak's powers had grown beyond anything he could have predicted when he trained the man, then a boy in the ways of the Force.

"Wh- why do you continue this fight, Malak? You are the leader, not Revan. Why do you continue to follow him after-"  
Malak silenced Zhar with his armored boot, knocking the Twi'lek into unconsciousness. Whatever sway his old Jedi Master held over him was long dead and Malak moved on, Sith soldiers and Dark Jedi finding those he left in his wake and returning them to the transports. They would never awaken again from the unnatural sleep that fell over them.

A disturbance passed through the Force, subtle against the backdrop of a galaxy-spanning war, but potent as it signified the pain and loss of powerful Jedi. Most would hardly feel a twinge, but a Jedi High Councillor was not most and Nomi Sunrider's eyes widened as she misinterpreted the pain from Dantooine as the deaths of those she had accompanied to Manaan. Pulling away from Jolee, the Grandmaster of the Jedi Order pushed past her grief to return to her duty. Her duty to the Republic and the Jedi Order to end the threat of Darth Revan.

Revan twitched as the Force shifted slightly, frowning as he tried to pinpoint its origin while the other Jedi around him stiffened at the sensation. Bastila had stopped her retort to the Jedi in her throat, her gray eyes shifting in confusion before they pushed the concern aside. Whatever was happening was far away and a horrible thing that shouldn't be dwelt upon. Dwelling upon the pain she had felt a whisper of would only lead to anger and she knew with a quick glance towards her companion where anger led.

"Bastila Shan, step away from that monster this instant!"  
The voice was familiar to Bastila and she turned, surprised to see the Grandmaster of the Jedi Order for the last decade and the Jedi who had trained her in Battle Meditation approaching swiftly, a dark-skinned old man who she did not recognize but garbed in Jedi robes behind her. Almost without thought, Bastila made to step away from Revan. It was a reaction to an order from a teacher rather than a conscious thought but Revan spotted the intent and clenched his left hand, bringing it in front of his abdomen as he began collecting the Force within him, pushing it inward and building a wall around it that only his will, concentrated into his closed fist restrained.

"Think for yourself for once, Bastila."  
Revan stated calmly, ignoring the glare his callous statement drew from Bastila as she turned to face him, crossing her arms over her chest and adopting a stubborn expression.

"I am thinking for myself, Revan. I have been for a while, but I cannot ignore a lifetime of training."  
Revan seemed to calm at that, but every Force-sensitive in the sector could feel his power as he continued gathering it within himself.

"I am not going to leave you in their _custody_ alone again. It does the Jedi Order and myself a disservice. I will not allow them to- to rape your mind for their own means again. While what you did was wrong, Revan. You did it in the best interests of the galaxy while their actions were in the best interests of themselves. They feared you and continued the legacy of the Jedi Covenant and Lucian Draay. They allowed fear to overcome the very oaths they took to respect life. Taking life is not so terrible a thing as twisting it and while I am horrified of what you have done in the past, Revan. I can understand it from a logical sense and I can- I can even accept that it was the best solution you were presented. Those that- that tried to force you to be something you were not were wrong and they made their decision in the interest of preserving their comfort. The galaxy would have survived under Darth Revan, but I fear if what I have seen in your mind is the case, it won't under Malak, the Jedi Order or the Republic as it is. There is too much corruption, too much inaction and too much weakness."

Revan looked a bit surprised at that, but kept a hold of the energy he was gathering and cast Bastila a significant look while the Jedi surrounding them activated their lightsabers. The uncertainty in Bastila's eyes told Revan she wasn't ready to fight the Jedi surrounding him.

"You are beginning to sound like he did at the end of Mandalore's war, Bastila. Revan is too much of a danger to remain free and if we cannot convince him to return with us peacefully-"  
Revan reached out, grasping Bastila's arm and concentrating the Force within him, making sure it wouldn't harm her as the Jedi moved to end the threat that was him. Once Bastila's safety was assured, Revan raised his left hand upward, opening his fisted hand with his palm facing upwards while a pulse of Force-energy shot outward in an invisible wave. The Force-wave knocked all of the Jedi on their backs and Revan took off in a run towards the _Ebon Hawk_, practically dragging Bastila as he went. Releasing Bastila's arm after her mind caught up with their actions and she fled with him, Revan turned his eyes to her, his thoughts passing on the message to her to prepare the ship for takeoff. Pivoting on his heel and coming to a dead stop from his sprint, Revan's crimson-bladed lightsaber intercepted Kaera Nurr's azure blade and he drove the surprised Jedi into a wall with a well-placed kick to her abdomen while flicking his saber across her thigh in a disabling move. Without thought to the action, Revan spun and avoided Nomi Sunrider's emerald blade, his red locking with the green energy as it gave chase to his absent body, seeking not to kill, but to disable him. Revan did not bother using the Force as it would have taken precious milliseconds to gather the energy and he merely used his own power as a shield to fend off the Jedi's Force-assaults.

_"I will not be taken alive."  
_Revan promised himself. The thought of being the Jedi's pawn once more was more unsettling than his own death and Revan did not care of he was left an invalid the rest of his existence, he would not go back to being someone's mindless slave. It was the way Revan always fought, the way a Mandalorian fought. Reckless abandon was given form in a deadly dance of energy-blades and invisible Force-powers. Revan moved in a saber-form that resembled Juyo, though his motions were intuitive, even against such powerful foes.

Kavar was on him a second later and Revan said nothing, only using his mouth to draw in breath as he spun, parrying Kavar's deadly blades and tripping the Jedi Master with the toe of his boot. The Jedi Master stumbled, nearly impaling himself on Nomi's blade and backed off in surprise while Atris took his place. Rubbing his leg for a moment, where he was sure he had sprained something, Kavar glanced at Kaera Nurr, seeing that the young Knight was still alive and being assisted by Jolee Bindo. Quatra lay where she had fallen from Revan's Force-attack, unconscious but still breathing regularly. Drawing in a calming breath, Kavar cast the discomfort in his leg into the Force before moving to intercept Revan.

Atris' style was a formal Makashi that was meant for individual duels between only one person and another. It had no place in a three to one fight and Revan took part of Atris' saber off in a split-second of crossing blades with her. Surprised, the Echani Jedi Councillor froze. She had never fought in the wars and never faced an opponent in a life or death duel and the thought of dying at Revan's blade had not occurred to her until that very moment. Revan's saber moved to impale Atris before Kavar joined in the fight once more, pushing Revan's blade back.

"Atris!"  
The Jedi Librarian looked up at Kavar's shout, catching his short-bladed lightsaber expertly, though she trembled slightly at the near-death encounter moments before. Rejoining the battle, Atris adapted her style to suite the shorter blue blade Kavar had loaned her and chose to deflect Revan's blows instead of make strikes for his openings. Revan had so many openings in his style that Atris was genuinely surprised he was not on the ground dead or dismembered.

Thoughts flashed through your mind a lightyear a second when you were fighting for your life, but Revan kept his thoughts away from his actions, knowing that any mis-step, any distraction would be his end. He didn't want to die, but he wasn't afraid to. He had earned death a trillion times over with each life his actions ended, but he was not ready to die, not finished shaping the galaxy into what it needed to be to survive the True Sith. There were regrets, pain and sorrow in Revan's mind, but they merely passed like the walls of the corridor around him as he moved, his body moving with grace honed from a lifetime of martial training and the strength of one driven by obsession, by fanaticism in his beliefs. Revan believed he was right, believed in what he was doing and dwelling on the unfortunate side-effects of his plan for the galaxy was only a weakness and weakness was to be overcome.

_"They condemned me before I had done anything wrong. Betrayed the Jedi's oath to protect the Republic, betrayed their students through corrupted teaching and flawed ideals. Betrayed even their vaunted Light when they sided with Lucian Draay and his abominable plan."_

Revan's thoughts carried to Bastila as she raced to the _Hawk _and sent out a recall signal to the others. The Padawan briefly dwelled on her mother, worry rising within her before she pushed it aside. Her mother was in the hands of some of the best healers in the galaxy and Revan had paid the medical facility enough credits from his account to keep the hospital running for a decade. Her mother would be safe, especially on the neutral ground of Manaan.  
_"The Selkath will be joining the battle..."_

Bastila worried mentally, the message passing on through the bond to Revan unconsciously. Revan jerked in surprise as it hit him, alien from his body and invading his thoughts he had so carefully buried and he missed a strike, a violent riposte from Nomi causing the fierce duel to stop. Revan stared at the hole in his chest in shock, his brown eyes glazing as he stumbled back and to his left. The solid corridor wall stopped him from dropping to his knees. Pain shot through him and Revan felt his lungs struggling, felt his muscles failing to respond to the signals his mind sent them and he focused his eyes on Nomi's, seeing the same surprise he felt in the Grandmaster's eyes.

"Oh Force, Revan."  
Nomi muttered, her thoughts invaded by a warning from the Force not to strike Revan. The Jedi tried to pull her attack and had missed Revan's heart by mere inches, instead driving it into his left shoulder and grazing his lung. Revan swayed, stumbling back as his eyes lost focus in pain and he snarled wordlessly, lifting his saber in a weak strike that Atris parried gently as she stared at Revan in shock. None of them wanted to kill Revan, even in their anger and they realized that the Force was with Revan in that fight, that the Force would have seen a single Dark Lord of the Sith live rather than six Jedi. Well, five Jedi and a self-outcast Padawan.

"Kid has a destiny."  
Jolee Bindo said calmly, watching as Kavar and Nomi backed away from Revan. The old man's eyes studied Revan's aura in silence as he frowned. Nobody should be on their feet after a hit like Revan took but he still fought back, feebly trying to skewer Atris while the Echani merely fended off his blows. The Force was swirling around Revan, chaotic and powerful in its form and all of the Jedi had been shocked to stillness for a moment. Revan had stood up against two of the best swordsmen in the galaxy, stood up to one of the most powerful Jedi in recent history and two other skilled Jedi without taking a single hit. There was no skill in the universe that could account for Revan's survival, no will so unbreakable that it would not falter in the hopelessness of such a confrontation and Jolee wondered what the deposed Sith Lord's purpose was before a cry from Atris startled him into action. The Jedi was on her knees, clutching at her forearm as Kavar's borrowed saber blazed on, imbedded in the wall beside Revan.

"Revan, please-"  
Atris said quietly, her cultured voice sounding close enough to Bastila's that Revan stopping his killing blow. The red of Revan's blade glowed in Atris' azure eyes and Revan's lip curled as he made to finish the Jedi off. He couldn't abide Atris to live after what she had done.

"There is nothing in this galaxy more tragic than the destruction of a single being. Even in the face of the destruction I rained upon the galaxy nothing matches the sheer _evil_ it takes to focus on destroying a single individual. I tried to be a good Mandalorian, tried to be a good Jedi, a good son, a good General a good man... I tried to live my life with honor, even as it was taken from me. Even if my honor died, I still had my own mind but you took that away from me as the war took everything else! You and those bastards took apart my mind with your powers and fear and needles and machines and you drove me to this hollow thing I am. You supported Lucian, you supported what they did to me when you _knew_. You _knew_ what that bastard did on Taris, you knew what he was becoming but you let your fear control you and you lashed out at the easy target, the one that was tearing down the fragile walls you built up in your foolish little mind of what it mean to be a Jedi, what it meant to be righteous. The galaxy doesn't work in Light and Dark, it doesn't follow the shades of black and white. You think yourself so pure, so firmly entrenched in the light that you would act no better than a Sith, no better than that bastard child-molesting scum Xor. You have violated your oath as a Jedi, you have violated my body and the sanctity of my own mind, forced me to be some puppet, some mindless drone for your cause and you think I will suffer you to live? If I were to allow you to live it would be a cruelty upon the galaxy, not a mercy."

Neither Nomi nor Kavar had made to move during Revan's rant but they sensed his intent at the end of his speech and moved forward, Kavar calling his saber from where it was imbedded in the wall to a path that would deflect Revan's kill-strike while Nomi drew the Force around her and hurled her own blade towards Revan, hoping to stop him before he did any more harm. Atris merely stared at the man with an expression of horror. What he said had not been far off the mark and she felt a twinge in her chest that wasn't fear or anger, though she would not admit to the shame of her actions, she knew what it was as Revan prepared to end her.

A blasterbolt stopped Revan and he staggered from the force of it and Nomi's saber arced harmlessly past Revan. A hole was burned cleanly in his back, the acrid smell of burnt flesh and fabric reaching his nostrils and Revan turned his gaze to some nameless and terrified looking freighter pilot, a look of surprise crossing his features as he slumped back against the wall, sliding down to the ground as his blood formed a streak that showed his fall. A cool rage passed through Revan as he realized he'd been shot down from behind, just as his father had been. He had also been diminished just as his father had though not cut off from the Force and Revan Qel-Droma looked up steadily into Atris' blue eyes, his own flickering a moment to his still active weapon.

"Not like father. I- I can't die like father."

There was no honor in it and Revan cursed the nameless pilot for this. He had earned the right to die by the blade, earned the right to die as a warrior. He had fought so many with his own hands that all he asked in the end was to die as he lived, by the saber. He had also made a mistake though and had only been concentrating on the threat of the Jedi.

"You're not going to die, Revan."

Atris said shakily, still clutching her injury. Revan's brown eyes dulled slightly at that and he sneered in unadulterated hatred. He wouldn't be taken alive. Painfully slowly, Revan's hand reached out to his saber on his belt as Nomi tried to collect his other and he depressed the switch, causing Atris to start as she backed away. With a groan of pain, Revan forced himself to his knees while the Jedi and the freighter pilot that had shot him looked on in shocked silence and Revan slowly rose to his feet, a thin line of blood flowing from his lips to his chin, obscured by his beard.

"I won't be taken alive. Not again."

Revan's eyes glazed slightly as he staggered and Atris took a step back, cursing aloud as the wounded man tried to kill her again. Nomi dropped Revan's saber she had been collecting and sent a Force-push towards the man, driving him into the wall and causing him to collapse on the ground in a boneless heap. The blue saber in Revan's hand flickered off, the breathing of the deposed Dark Lord evening out as he lay still.

"This is neutral ground, you know. And if there was a holocron recording this we were the aggressors. Our weapons were active before his and he defended himself. Loathe as I am to admit it, we cannot take him prisoner. Likely we are to be imprisoned because of this."

From a hangar several hundred meters away, the _Ebon Hawk_ rose from Manaan, Darth Bandon leaning back in the pilot's seat thoughtfully as he rubbed his beard. The two Sith apprentices with him were experts in stealth and their powers were not too small to make them worthless and not to large to make them a threat to his position. Smirking, the Sith didn't feel the blade that severed his head as one of the Sith apprentices carried out Malak's orders to end Bandon's worthlessness. Both knew they were not to harm Bastila Shan and while the first apprentice took control of the ship, tossing Bandon's corpse aside without a care, the second secured the unconscious Padawan in the main hold, making sure she was properly restrained. Malak had made it clear failure would result in death and neither apprentice looked forward to death.

Juhani spared a glance at her unconscious Jedi Master before she followed the sense of danger she had felt in the Force, sprinting past where Jolee Bindo knelt beside Kaera Nurr and where Nomi Sunrider was trying to dress Revan's wounds. The Cathar did not spare any of it thought as she raced into the hangar bay the _Hawk _ had been and stared out into the empty hangar, her eyes tracking a distant speck on the horizon before it vanished in the daylight of Manaan's blue sky. With a curse, the Cathar turned and marched back to where Atris was allowing Kavar to wrap her injury and stopped, unable to bring herself to bow to the Masters when she saw the condition Revan was in.

"Bastila had been taken by the Sith. They used your fight with Revan as a distraction and caught her unaware. We must pursue."  
The look in the Cathar's yellow eyes was fierce and Nomi exchanged a concerned look with Kavar. The entire reason they had confronted Revan was to capture him and spare Bastila.


	29. Chapter 28: Control

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"Revenge I can understand. It is my name's sake after all, but I can't get revenge on Malak. Malak has done nothing, taken nothing from me that I did not take from him before. He is the one seeking revenge... A shame for Bastila she had to travel with a bastard like me, considering how many enemies I have."  
~Revan Qel-Droma to High Councillor Atris after his capture on Manaan~_

Chapter 28: Control

A hiss of a respirator cut through Kashyyyk's Shadowlands, the ambient noise of distant creatures drowned out through thick vines and distance. Another hiss sounded as the respirator released its patient's breath. Having a lightsaber and blaster punctures and scorched lungs had left Revan weakened, almost dead after the fight had ended and he was forced to wear a respirator while his lungs healed. The device was a simple gray mask that covered his nose and mouth, a tube connected to a filter and power generator that kept Revan's lungs clean as they healed. The hissing of the breather had killed whatever stealth Revan would have been using if it had been just him. A dozen Jedi Knights with their weapons active and their eyes on the deposed Dark Lord made stealth an impossibility and Revan walked with labored breaths to the computer he had set-up on Kashyyyk years before, activating the mechanism to unlock the device, the process taking longer than necessary as his hands were secured firmly in binders that were resistant to Force-energy.

Kaera Nurr stepped forward, adding the information from the Kashyyyk Starmap to the Dantooine and Tatooine information. Manaan's information was being collected by a Republic team that Carth was heading and the only reason given for that was a confidential agreement between the Selkath and the Republic that couldn't be trusted outside of a select few in the Republic and Selkath hierarchy. Since Revan had not been a legal citizen in any government following his exile from the Jedi Order, betrayal by the Sith and the Republic wanted nothing to do with him, the Jedi had not been charged with disturbing the peace on Manaan. They'd even been given custody of a severely wounded Revan and transport was arranged on a Jedi-controlled Republic cruiser that was acting as the Jedi's mobile command station in lieu of the Jedi Temple and the various Enclaves spread across the Republic.

Mission and Zalbaar had been left in a Wookiee village along with a very angry Canderous. The Mandalorian had still been recovering from his injuries on Tatooine and hadn't put up much of a fight when he'd been dumped as baggage along with Mission and Zalbaar. Mission had vocally objected to being set aside and the girl's Wookiee companion looked ready to tear apart everyone in range but Revan had simply shook his head and all arguments had died. It was safer for them on Kashyyyk and Revan had simply lost the edge he held when Bastila was around. Without the Padawan's thoughts and emotions to balance out his own and give him a guide, he was merely running on autopilot, a simple drone that did as asked and gave no complaints. The Jedi's Mindwipe had consisted of some mental conditioning that had been very similar to mental triggers, though not as blatant. Revan simply did not have the emotion necessary to care if he backed the Jedi or the Sith and since the Jedi were the ones asking the questions, he was answering to them.

It disturbed Revan greatly as he was aware of his own thoughts on the matter and the emotions he would normally feel but didn't. He knew he should be resistant, but he wasn't. He knew he should be angry, but he felt nothing and he knew some part of him should be concerned for Bastila, but he felt only a strain at the edge of his senses, a flickering of agony and terror that was so distant he couldn't actually _feel_ anything.

"We have what we need. Now where is the final Starmap, Revan?"  
Kaera asked calmly, her blue eyes snapping to Revan's impassive face. She wouldn't admit it aloud, but she was unnerved by the man's empty expression and while she'd first taken it as concern for Bastila or perhaps silent rage at being caught again, she knew it was something deeper, something unnatural. Revan's brain had been damaged in his initial capture and even before that it had sustained multiple traumas from injury and war and simple mental breakdowns. There wasn't much in there when the Jedi had stuck their fingers into Revan's head and Kaera wondered at the extent of Revan's brain damage and if it really was all due to Malak's betrayal or if the Jedi had done something, cut some important part out of Revan to make him docile, easily controlled. He only seemed to be himself when Bastila was close, or at least what she assumed was his standard personality and the Jedi Knight fought down her doubts and unease. Revan was a monster and deserved what happened to him and either way he couldn't change.

"Korriban, the Valley of the Dark Lords in the tomb of Naga Sadow. For you to infiltrate the site unnoticed you will need to pose as a Sith student and pass the trials necessary to gain access to the room. It is sealed and used as a training method to help students channel their darker and more primal urges. I suggest Juhani for the mission. She is passionate but also a believer in the Jedi ways. No amount of corruption would see her turn again."  
Kaera pursed her lips, glancing at her fellow Jedi. She would think having eleven other Jedi Knights guarding Revan would be excessive, but she had seen the man stand up to Kavar and Nomi Sunrider for longer than he had any right to and they were taking no chances. The fact that Revan was clad in his armor was simply for his safety. There was no telling what weapons were hidden away in his armor but Revan's current mindset was strange. All he did was eat, sleep and train unless asked. It was... unsettling and wrong. Kaera had seen the man beneath whatever he was now and she knew something was terribly wrong to have made Revan so... docile. Before he had been like a wild animal, untamed and strong but now he was simply a tool, a weapon even if she were to stretch her mind. Pushing aside her unease and doubts, Kaera focused on the mission and its importance. The fate of the Republic and the Jedi Order rested in her hands and she would use Revan, kill him if necessary to protect her way of life. She'd resolved this after Tatooine, after he had so easily evaded her and shown his true colors. The colors of a Sith Lord. Not that he'd made any effort to hide them beneath a thin veneer of civility. Revan would always be a monster, regardless of the extent of his current condition. It wouldn't be permanent.

"Juhani is on probation for her actions on Dantooine and her actions in support of you. She had plenty of opportunities to turn you back over to our custody and chose not to. As a result she is to be kept under watch by her former Master and under guard so she is not a danger to herself or any of those around her. You do not make the decisions, Revan."  
Revan's eyes turned to stare at Kaera Nurr, unblinking and blank as he responded through the respirator over his mouth. There was no inflection in his voice, no tone and it was a flat, dead thing that made Kaera shiver as a chill rose up her spine.

"If you wish to die, that is your prerogative. I was merely offering the most logical choice."

Analyzing Revan's words, Kaera couldn't decide if he was being honest or if it had been mocking. It could have been a threat for all she knew or a warning and the Jedi Knight glared at the deposed Sith Lord as he was shoved roughly by one of his escort guards to move on through the Shadowlands and back to the lift to the walkways high above. What was visible of Revan's face showed no emotion, no reaction to the rough treatment and his eyes gave away nothing as he continued on the path, oblivious or uncaring of his rough treatment and the fear and agitation of the Jedi handling him. It was almost enough to shame Kaera that Jedi would act in such a petty way to a prisoner... almost. The prisoner was a man responsible for countless deaths and unfathomable evil and she quickly got over her momentary lapse of judgement. Guilt was a word to be associated with Revan only in regards to his actions, not his treatment. Repeating that thought again in her own mind, Kaera's eyes hardened as she turned to glare at Revan's back. The bastard was probably laughing and antagonizing them all on purpose.

Revan was not antagonizing the Jedi around him, he simply didn't care one way or the other. He knew what he'd done as a Sith Lord and a Jedi and he didn't care. He knew why he was fighting such a seemingly senseless and wasteful war but the emotion behind the drive had taken away the drive to defeat the True Sith. Revan had simply become what the Jedi had made of him, what they planned for him to be all along in his training and what they had tried to make him when they'd forced the mindwipe upon him. A mindless drone and a willing slave. Loyalty to the Code was all that seemed to matter to the Jedi Order anymore, a Code that had been re-worded four decades before because of Exar Kun, but one that persisted. In the corner of Revan's mind, a skeptical part of him that wouldn't surface had scoffed.

_"A Code that changes at their whim. A flawed Code meant to control, not to teach."_

Even with the barest of resistance, Revan was helpless against the mind-suggestions that the Jedi around him were channeling. There were so many drugs flowing through his veins that he had simply been sapped of his anger and the fact that he could barely feel Bastila had made him nothing more than an automaton. He would learn, follow orders and train. Just as he had in those months after the mindwipe when he was locked away in his quarters and living a lie as a Republic soldier. He'd been a Republic soldier, a General once and it hadn't stuck. It never stuck.

"Malak is going to kill all of you for this."

Revan stated with absolute certainty, his mouth turning into a grim smile before anything he would have felt passed behind a shadow of nothingness. Empty of his drive, his will, Revan merely looked back on his life and actions with detached curiosity, unable to bring up the emotions that accompanied the actions. He had told the Jedi simply because they had asked him to be clear on the threats surrounding them. Malak would kill them for what they'd done to Revan.

"Why would he do that? I'd think Malak would enjoy seeing his old Master walking around like a trained Kath Hound."  
One of the Jedi, a Rodian man sneered before he had the decency to look ashamed. He was a Jedi and above such things but having the man responsible for the pain and destruction in their galaxy beside him was almost too much. Without taking insult, Revan faced the Rodian with a blank expression, no anger in his words when he responded with the same flat tone he'd used since... well, since the Jedi put him on enough painkillers and anti-psychotics to take down a Rancor.

"Malak was subservient to me. To see his enemies enslave one who had enslaved him would drive him into a fit of rage. He will kill all of you and he has the skill and strength to do so with ease. He was almost beyond me when the High Council attempted to erase my memories and will and his powers can only grow."  
Silence answered Revan as the group of Jedi all halted, twelve pairs of eyes focusing on the Lord of Revenge. The Force had shown no deceit in Revan's statement and each Jedi felt their stomachs drop.  
"Why did you betray the Jedi Order?"  
Revan tilted his head, glancing at Kaera Nurr with a look of annoyance that dropped quickly.

"I told you that already. They sided with Lucian Draay after the Padawan Massacre on Taris and they tried to arrest me and all of the other Revanchists when all we wanted was to protect the Republic, to protect the peace we were supposedly the guardians of. Refusing to fight an enemy doesn't make the threat go away and it doesn't bring peace. Imagine what would have happened if the Jedi hadn't sided with the Republic during this war. If they did as they had during the Mandalorian wars."  
Jolee Bindo frowned from where he stood at the front of the group, leading the Jedi through the Shadowlands. He'd caught up a bit in the recent weeks since leaving Kashyyyk and he knew enough of the ways of the galaxy to read between the lines of the reports. Still, he'd always been a bit rebellious and even if he was an old man it didn't means he didn't still have that streak of rebellion still in his heart. Questions brought knowledge and wisdom, not blind obedience.

"Reports I read said the Jedi saw a threat beyond the Mandalorians. Had to do with some of the things the Jedi Covenant were making such a mess over. They did a stupid thing, but they still made an effort to stop your war. They saw Malak destroying Taris. Your war has cost more lives and worlds than the Mandalorian's war. How could they just stand back and let you take over the Republic?"  
Revan turned to Jolee, frowning at the man a moment before he processed all the information.

"You are strange, old man. It worries me. Or would, normally."  
At the blank tone and the phantom of concern, Jolee rolled his eyes as he scoffed.

"Make you think I have the taint of the Darkside, kid? Oooooh. Scary!"  
Reluctantly, several Jedi smiled at that while Revan merely stared at Jolee before the older Jedi turned away. Without expression, Revan continued walking, his eyes focused on the future. He _should_ escape from the Jedi as they had no further use for him and would likely lock him away and while he did not truly care, Revan wasn't one to be caged and he would avoid it if at all possible. Taking a moment to collect his strength and thoughts, Revan decided that escape was the best course of action. From there, he would meet up with the Sith still loyal to him over Roon and become a little thorn in someone's side. Whether he would be Malak's or the Jedi's annoyance, Revan had not yet decided. Mentally shrugging at his plans, Revan stood at the center of the lift to the walkways above. A small click, unheard when coupled with the sound of his respirator drew a small smirk to Revan's lips that one of the Jedi noticed.

"What are you smiling at?"  
The Jedi asked with a sneer, moments before he fell from the slowly raising lift into the Shadowlands. Shouts of distress soon followed Revan's sudden attack.

"What the-"

"Look out he's loose!"

"By the Force!"

"Jaden, No!"

Due to the tight space of the lift and the sudden and unexpected disappearance of one of their companions, the Jedi failed to react in time and Revan leapt over the edge of the lift, falling into the dark depths of Kashyyyk's Shadowlands without a sound. Making to follow, Kaera was restrained by Jolee as the old former Padawan looked over the edge of the lift with a grim frown.

"Its too high to survive, kid. We can take the lift back down once we get topside. It won't stop until we get there anyways with how the counterweights are balanced."

With a sigh, Kaera nodded her agreement as she joined Jolee in silently staring over the edge of the lift. A cable from a Mandalorian wrist-launcher gleamed briefly against the edge of the lift before it tightened from the weight of Revan's descent. The lift shifted ever-so-slightly before the cable was cut and Revan dropped harmlessly to the ground in a crouch, his respirator hissing as he drew in a breath.

Taking a moment to allow the aches and pains of his injured body to ease, Revan calmly walked towards the Jedi he had thrown over the edge of the lift, dropping his eyes to the Jedi's broken leg before he took a step back to avoid the Jedi's desperate attack. Having been taken completely by surprise, the Jedi was severely injured internally and could barely stand, let alone fight. Revan calmly took the Jedi's weapon from his hand, casually bringing his elbow into the Jedi's face to knock him down before he flipping the saber over and cut through his binders. Without a second though, Revan reversed the blue lightsaber blade and decapitated the Jedi as he tried to stand again before making his way to the edge of one of the many trees, his eyes flicking upwards. With a grunt of annoyance, Revan clipped the Jedi's lightsaber to his belt before he activated a small mechanism in both of his gauntlets and two serrated blades popped out of the sides. Walking to the base of the tree, Revan took in a steadying breath before he began the long, long climb to the walkways high above. It wouldn't take too long to get up there, not if he let himself get pissed enough to ignore the protests of his body and injuries.

Kaera Nurr stared down at the decapitated body of her fellow Jedi with a sigh before she turned to look at the lift. They'd left two Jedi topside with the Wookiee controlling the device to guard it while she, Jolee and the remaining Jedi searched for their lost companion and prisoner. Jolee was the first to find Revan's trail and easily followed the path to where Revan had started his arduous climb. With a low whistle, Jolee turned his eyes from the towering tree to the marks in the bark. He'd seen similar marks before and with a frown, the aged former Padawan scoffed aloud at their own stupidity. They should've used a Republic set of armor and not Revan's own armor but the Jedi were so focused on Revan's Force-powers and not overly concerned as he had no lightsaber that they did not realize the man's armor was a simple treasure-trove of weaponry.

"Kid's a Mandalorian as well as a Qel-Droma? That explains a lot, I suppose. Any of you get the impression he coulda killed us all on that lift and taken it up himself?"  
Kaera nodded absently, her eyes following the marks Revan's gauntlet-blades made.

"Mandalorian wrist-blades. I should've checked but I was too worried over the thought of someone taking a shot at him. We needed him to unlock the Starmap here on Kashyyyk and he seemed so... docile."  
Jolee huffed on a half-laugh and shook his head as the Jedi hauled away the body of their fallen comrade.

"The kid is smart and worse, he's patient. If he's anything like other Mandalorians or his father he won't let anything stop him from his goal, not until he's done all he possibly can... I guess the real question is what the Hell his goal could be. From what you've told me and how many drugs they pumped into him, his master plan could be anything from galactic domination to an eating contest with a Hutt..."

Scowling at Jolee's attempt at humor, Kaera moved to the lift, her eyes narrowing as the cable connecting the lift swayed unsteadily, coiling as it hit the ground with a dull thud. A look of surprise crossed the Jedi's young but sharp features as she looked up to see a blue lightsaber blade extinguish itself.

"Damn you, Revan!"  
One of the Jedi accompanying her shouted skyward. The Jedi trapped on Kashyyyk's Shadowlands silently agreed with the outburst, their eyes gazing upward before a young Iridonian Jedi took charge and began making use of the thick rope that had been the lift's cable. Using her lightsaber to tailor the rope into a harness, the Jedi gave a tired sigh and tied it around herself before taking a small vibroblade from her boot and another from her belt. Stalking to the base of the tree Revan had used, the Iridonian stabbed one of her blades into the tree and began her own ascent, tying off the rope to a branch she passed before she moved on, making sure to anchor herself in case she slipped.

"Be careful Shira."

Kaera called, wincing as a dull thud and a wet popping sound drew her attention to the ruined lift. The body of the Wookiee guard lay in a twisted heap, a look of surprised fury etched on its blood-matted features and the Jedi Knight leading the party looked upward, her eyes narrowing as she glanced to where Shira was hastily working her way up the tree-trunk.

"Bloody Hell."  
Part of an arm with a lightsaber in hand hit the ground, the green beam of the lightsaber still active and casting a foreboding glow on the group. A distant scream and another dull thud filled the air and if one were to stretch their senses with the Force, the clashing of lightsabers could be heard in the distance overhead. Not that it lasted long as the last Jedi guarding the lift above fell to the ground, dead long before his fall began. With a shiver of apprehension, Kaera quickly used her communicator to call for support from their cruiser in orbit.

Bastila Shan lifted her hands up shakily, staring at them in mute horror. She'd suffered Malak's tortures for the better part of two weeks and she wondered absently if this was how Revan broke Jedi. It had started as expected, with lightning and pain and angry taunts from a Sith Lord but what had happened afterwards was something she had not expected. Malak had only given her pain for a week, unrelenting in his torture. He hadn't even laid a hand on her except to caress her face briefly and taunt her with how much power he held, but he had not rested for a week either, kept her awake and unable to meditate through agonizing Force-lightning. She'd never truly understood how painful the technique was until it finally scorched her flesh, burned itself not only on her body but also her very Force-essence, her very soul and tainted her with its dark energy. It was a violation of spirit that sapped any strength she had and when her words of resistance had turned to words of hate, Malak's eyes had smiled.

He'd given her one of the Dark Jedi that had captured her, left her alone and unbound to fight off the man if she could. She had, though she had suffered a few bruises and what felt like a small wrist-fracture. She'd killed the Dark Jedi with her bare hands, in the manner she had seen Revan kill. She had known the man's intent before he'd tried to pin her and she had not given in, not let him touch her in such a vulgar manner. The snap of the Sith's neck was almost too loud in her exhausted and aching mind and she had simply stared down at the cooling corpse in surprise. Surprise at how easy it had been to mimic Revan's Mandalorian technique and how easy it had been to think only to kill the man and not disable him as a Jedi would have.

It had shaken what remained of her beliefs in the Jedi. She was too weak to fight the man off, but she had drawn him in and struck at his weakness, a weakness that had ended the man's life. Weakness was death, she realized and she understood why Revan was so disgusted by the pacifist ways of the Jedi, understood why he chose to kill instead of maim or wound. If the man had been left unconscious, he would have attacked her again without hesitation and she had no doubts in her mind what would have happened if she were too weak to mount a proper defense. The shifting of the bones in the man's neck, the surprise in his green eyes and the ease of it all still made the captive Padawan feel dirty, feel as if she had done something wrong even though she knew it was the only intelligent, the only sane thing to do in the situation she was in.

She had sat in the corner of her prison after that, her knees drawn to her chest and her arms wrapped around them as she shivered in the cool chamber that had been her own personal Hell for a week. Malak had come in that night, stared down at her with a look of appreciation in his dead gray eyes and had nodded his approval.

"The strong take what they want from the weak. If the weak do not become strong and resist, they fall. The strong survive and the weak perish, it is the way of things."  
Malak hadn't touched her after that, he'd simply left her alone for a single day to play over how she'd killed her assailant and how she'd enjoyed the rush she felt at his passing, enjoyed the power she had in the moment she held life in her hands. She had been in such a position of helplessness during her torture that it disgusted her and she knew Revan would be disgusted by her helplessness as well.  
"Revan would kill without hesitation. Not because he enjoys it, but because it is necessary."  
She'd killed the second Dark Jedi that had helped capture her without hesitation, using the Force to crush the Sith's throat before he could even try to attack her. Malak had given her the guards that had kept her from escape next, watching with mild interest as the Padawan's soft features hardened with conviction. It was right to kill those who would weaken you, who would see you helpless. With each Sith she killed, she was granted a pass from torture and fed, not that she realized it. By the end of the second week Malak was bringing Sith soldiers that had never even seen Bastila, that had nothing to do with her capture for her to kill and he was surprised at the deadly efficiency in her technique. It reminded the former General of Revan's style and he was briefly comforted by that fact. When loyal, someone who fought like Revan was valuable to have between you and danger.

By the third week, Bastila was killing captive Republic soldiers and Jedi, her gray eyes as dead as Malak's to their pleas. They were weak, helpless and served no purpose. She would not allow herself to be helpless again, would not allow herself to be the victim. It was either her, or those she killed and she knew her Battle Meditation was important to the galaxy, knew it was more important than some low ranking Republic soldier or some mindless Jedi pawns driven mad by torture.

Mentally, it had been a month of torment to the young woman, but the physical torture had only lasted a week. It was a technique Revan had designed to break the will of Jedi and it was evident with how many Dark Jedi served in the Sith Empire that it was an effective one. Bastila Shan pledged herself to Darth Malak's teachings by the end of the fourth week on Rakata Prime and in the heart of the Temple of the Ancients, she fell. It was so easy to fall, when she thought of all the blood on her hands, when she thought of Taris and of the prisoners she'd killed. It was so easy to kill them, so easy to give up a belief in a way of life she'd never fully accepted and one she'd questioned for as long as she traveled with Revan.

She was grateful to Malak in the end for opening her eyes to the weakness she'd allowed herself to feel while a Jedi. She was grateful to Revan for showing her how easy it was to kill. Revan was a killer, as she was and she allowed herself a moment to feel... an attraction for Revan's darker side. There was nothing soft or caring about the man, yet his will was so strong, his presence so overwhelming that it had captured her attention, had attracted her like a moth to flame. Revan was the epitome of her new belief, yet he was weak as well. Weak for being captured by the Jedi on Manaan, weak for failing to save her, but he had saved her in another manner. He had shown her the way in his own actions and thoughts, in the nightmares she had shared with him and she found herself a little bit in love with the idea of power. Power to shape the galaxy so that what she had suffered, or nearly suffered would never happen again. Power to form the galaxy into something stronger so it could resist the True Sith.

Bastila Shan was truly grateful to Revan for being such a cold and calculating bastard while still remaining human, while still being honorable. It allowed what remained of her twisted conscience to stomach the thought of killing weak and defenseless people. They would merely be a sacrifice for the greater good of the galaxy, their bones paving the way for a galaxy that could repel the True Sith and could survive the coming war. It was the way of nature that the strongest survive, so why should it not be her way as well?

It was so easy to give in to the anger she had denied for so long. So easy to give in to her attraction to Revan and her desire to be free of weakness. She was not some frail damsel in distress to be rescued and when Revan came for her, she would save him from the lie the Jedi were making him live. She would save him as she had on the bridge of his flagship so long ago and she would love him. It was so easy to love a man so powerful as Revan. So easy to love his noble grand design for the galaxy and his intricate plans, his blind obsession with honor and his unerring balance of strength and skill. He was a man to be cherished, a power that even Malak wouldn't match when he recovered fully from the Jedi's meddling and Bastila closed her eyes with a sigh, shivering as she let her breath out quietly. Revan would see her strong and unbroken and he would love her as well.

"The final step, young Bastila."  
Bastila pulled out of her thoughts, glancing over to where Darth Malak stood at the entrance of her prison. The Dark Lord of the Sith carried with him a set of black robes and a saberstaff, one she realized was not her own, but the weapon of Darth Bandon.

"This weapon was used to capture you, to make you weak. With it, you will turn what was once weakness into strength. It is what Revan and I set out to do from the very beginning and it is what you and I will continue to do in his absence."  
For a moment, Malak's eyes had looked so much like Alec's had during the Mandalorian Wars, so filled with fervent belief in his ways that Bastila was struck silent. She merely accepted the robes and weapon without a thought, bowing her head as she offered a small, subservient statement to seal her fate as the apprentice of the Dark Lord of the Sith.

"Yes, my Master."

Darth Malak's eyes smiled slightly at that, reflecting an expression of satisfaction his face could never fully show and he turned from the Padawan as she made to change her cloths, uninterested in her body as a true Sith Lord should be. It was his own test in a way, to remind himself that while she was beautiful that she was not to control him in such a manner, not to be allowed so close. Revan had made that mistake with him, trusted his apprentice and it had been his downfall. Leaving the door to the prison open, Malak turned when Bastila finished dressing and he took in the fallen Jedi before him with a single nod of approval.

"You will remain here while I go to the Star Forge to prepare the fleet we will need for the final push to Coruscant and the Core worlds. Kill any who question you, any who violate this temple and prove yourself to me. The Jedi will soon know of our location and Revan... Revan will return as he always does. It is his way. Kill him and you will have my trust."  
Bastila bowed to Malak, not saying a thing as the towering Dark Lord turned and left her alone. Closing her eyes for a moment, Bastila ran her fingers over the hilt of Darth Bandon's saberstaff and let out a sigh, making sure she was familiar with the weapon's balance before she ignited the blades and spun the staff in a simple flurry mean to familiarize herself with the weapon.

_"If I killed Revan, I wouldn't have your trust. I'll never have your trust and I'll never want it. Revan will overcome the Jedi holding him captive, will overcome all of the Sith on this world and he will overcome you, Malak. When he comes, he will be who he was meant to be and I will be at his side, where I belong..."_

Bastila allowed a grim smile to cross her lips as she adopted an Ataru stance and spin, stretching out her weary muscles in the confines of the Temple of the Ancients.

Author's Note: This ones for you Lord Europe. I guess you were right about my lack of seriousness/interest in this story. I am still wanting to finish this and I still plan to have... a lot to add to it. I'll try to keep the updates at a more reasonable rate. Time has been a bit constrained as of late with the holidays, but I got some time off work coming up so we'll be seeing another installment soon. Ooh! Also just broke 200k words with this chapter!


	30. Chapter 29: Revanchist

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"When in unfamiliar territory and surrounded, seek out allies and learn the lay of the land. When outnumbered, evade the enemy until they are in your battlefield, not theirs. When in doubt of victory in confrontation, fight dirty. Then victory is assured... and victory is glory, honor and life. The only things a Mandalore seeks."_

_~An old Mandalorian proverb~_

Chapter 29: Revanchist

Revan Qel-Droma was not the most skilled with a blade. He wasn't the strongest man in the galaxy, nor was he the most powerful Force user. Revan's power came from a combination of skills that simply worked in his favor. He was more the end result of circumstances beyond anyone's control that were subtly manipulated into his favor. Of course there were advantages to his upbringing and the grueling training it entailed.

Hunched over on his knees, Revan's eyes were closed as his body trembled in pain. His climb from the Shadowlands and his battle with the Jedi and Wookiee guards had torn at his healing body, his escape ironically detrimental to his health. The hissing of his respirator cut off the barely-audible sounds of pain he made as he tried to center himself. He wasn't pushing the pain off, though.

Pain was good. Pain gave him focus, gave him a hint of the anger that had once consumed his life and his soul. Anger and madness had been all he had known for the better part of a year during his reign as Dark Lord of the Sith and logic and sensibility were merely leftovers of his damaged mind. Panting in great heaving breaths, Revan struggled to his feet, stumbling into the towering wroshyr tree's massive form and using it to keep from falling back down. The Force was with him, but it wasn't exactly forthcoming with miracles and Revan embraced the pain to keep himself grounded and conscious.

The pain wasn't enough to make him pass out or go into shock, but it was a near-crippling pain that was caused by the simple task of breathing and Revan didn't know how he'd held himself together for the grueling climb or the battle that took place shortly after. Pressing the illusion of anger his pain brought to the front of his mind, Revan embraced the familiar, yet alien feel of the emotion and he tried through sheer strength of will to fight off the drugs in his blood that kept him as docile as a warm kinrath pup. Docile was not a word for a Mandalorian, not a thing for a warrior to be and he wouldn't subject himself to the illusion of Jedi control. He wouldn't be their slave, he wouldn't be their puppet and he wouldn't let the fact that he couldn't actually conjure any real emotions into himself stop him from getting the Hell off Kashyyyk and to where he was needed.

Bastila Shan was his chosen apprentice. She would replace Malak and be more than Alec had ever been. Bastila Shan would be an equal and stand not behind him, but at his side. He'd been grooming her for the position for months and he wouldn't let the interference of the Jedi or Malak's massive army stand in his way. At that point, Revan could only focus on Bastila Shan. She was the reason he was alive, the reason he felt anything and the dead nothingness that filled him was both welcome and repulsive in his own mind.

It was a good thing because it made him the Sith'ari, yet it was also repulsive in that it made him... something less. He couldn't focus like he used to, but his powers came easier to him than ever. He couldn't summon up the raw need that used to accompany his Force attacks, not like he had on Manaan when Bastila had been near and their connection had strengthened him. It was different than it had been then, there was no necessary purpose behind the attacks other than knowing that the Jedi and the Wookiee guards had been in his way.

It wasn't exactly something that inspired ease and the ghost of an emotion Revan felt troubled him since it lacked the potency needed to be tangible, flickered along his senses like distant fires, showing the tantalizing glow of their flames but too far off to allow him to feel their warmth.

Snapping out of his thoughts and the daze his pain caused him, Revan moved on, his gloved hand absently fingering his respirator. He didn't know if the device was meant to deal with the strain he was going through and while he could easily continue without it, he didn't want to be a walking corpse like Darth Sion, held together only with the power of the Force and hatred.

As with all things, that kind of power came at a terrible price and while Sion was an effective and nigh unkillable, he would never feel anything beyond pain. Would never have children, would never escape the madness that pain caused him. Madness was a liability and Revan didn't feel the need to carry around such a weakness for a second time.

Jedi Knight Shira Sa'o pulled herself gracelessly over the edge of a walkway, her breathing labored despite her Jedi training and her athletic body covered in a fine sheet of sweat. Pushing off the walkway's surface, the Jedi Knight took a moment to collect herself before she moved to where the lift to the Shadowlands had been. The ropes were cut away with a lightsaber, black scorches lining where Revan had ran a lightsaber blade across them.

Taking only a moment to dwell on the dead, the Iridonian Jedi Knight turned and closed her eyes, reaching out with her senses. She could sense a flickering of pain and what felt like an emotionless void in the Force. She knew that void well enough and set off in pursuit of the deposed Dark Lord, her red-orange eyes shifting to shadows around her, seeking potential threats and hiding places.

For a once Dark Lord of the Sith and a General of the Republic, Revan's trail was an easy one to follow and the Iridonian frowned at the implications. It had recently come to light that Revan was the son of Ulic Qel-Droma, that he was once a Mandalorian and that his memories were mostly intact. A Mandalorian would not leave such an obvious trail to follow unless they were trying to lure their opponents somewhere and the Jedi Knight reached down to her communicator, shutting the small device off to avoid any random sounds from its small form. It wouldn't do to give away her position if Kaera felt the need to contact her.

What she found, she didn't quite expect. It was beyond troubling and the Jedi used all of her training to hide her presence within the Force and pulled the hood of her cloak over her head to help her blend into the shadows.

Revan was standing in front of three Dark Jedi who wore the grays and blacks of their Order. Unlike most Dark Jedi, these were not wearing masks and their hoods were lowered, allowing the Jedi Knight to take in their features. The two Dark Jedi on the outsides were both human, both young and both male. Their features were fairly unremarkable and lacked any lingering perusal and when the figure in the center moved to her left, decapitating one and Revan moved to the one on his left, killing him just as swiftly, their lack of importance was solidified in the grand scheme of things.

"So Malak has the Lords of Malachor still sending assassins against me? I'd have thought they'd be trying to kill each other off by now."  
The Dark Jedi that had been standing in the center of the trio of Sith had deactivated her weapon as soon as the battle ended and she was kneeling before Revan respectfully. Shira could make out the pale red of the woman's skin and headtails that told her the woman was a Twi'lek, but she saw nothing beyond that.

"The Revanchists... those still loyal to you, have gathered. Your droid's arrival was timely and we've introduced the slaver Xor to a new level of pain he will never recover from. We heard of your capture on Manaan from our spy networks within the Order and we're prepared to fight for you, Milord. We're prepared to die for you."  
They were, to. The Revanchists were the most fervently loyal and well-disciplined branch of the Sith Empire. They operated outside of Darth Malak's jurisdiction and only answered to Darth Revan. When Malak had taken over the Sith Empire and betrayed Revan, the Revanchists bled away into the chaos of the shifting empire and the galaxy to seek their own purposes.

Revan's return on Nar Shaddaa had given them their purpose back and they assembled on Roon, massing a fleet of loyal followers who had taken to the old name of Revan's Mandalorian war era Jedi followers.

"That's... convenient."

Revan sounded amused, but the Force showed plainly that he felt nothing one way or the other over the Twi'lek Sith's declaration of loyalty. Looking troubled, the Twi'lek looked up into Revan's expressionless face with a frown of worry, her obsidian eyes showing a struggle of respect warring with fear.

"Milord? Are you well?"  
The Twi'lek ventured, her voice lacking any hesitance or fear of Revan's reaction to an accusation of being anything less than one hundred percent. Revan seemed to consider his answer before he answered plainly, his tone flat.

"The Jedi tried to meddle with my mind. They cut out the part of me that feels anything and... well, you see the results, Aven."  
The Twi'lek Dark Jedi's red skin paled at the admission and then flushed dark red with fury as she stood, her hands clenched at her sides and rage burning in her dark eyes.

"I shall see them all dead, Milord. They won't reap the benefits of your treatment, they won't even see the Star Forge. I shall have all of our assassins move to-"  
Revan shook his head, surprising the hidden Jedi and the Revanchist Sith.

"There's no point in it, really. Roon is easily defended and it will make a fine base of operations but we will need something a bit more... obvious for our enemy's eyes to be focused upon."  
Aven looked down to the walkway, averting her eyes from Revan's cold, dead eyes. Something had changed since she saw him on Nar Shaddaa and it bothered her greatly. A great majority of the Revanchist Sith were former slaves. Those who the Republic and Jedi Order had sworn to protect were simply forgotten in the interests of politics. No one in the Core cared for the suffering of slaves on distant border worlds. They were out of sight and most definitely out of mind. Until Revan came. First on Taris, then a dozen other worlds.

Revan sent those young enough for Jedi training to the Order he'd abandoned, hoping the Jedi could reverse the damage done to the children while those considered too old to train as Jedi he took under his own tutelage. He taught the Force-sensitive slaves to stand on their own and gave them the weapons they needed to not only survive, but to thrive.  
He'd done the same for the Force-blinds as well and they made up a great majority of the soldiers and crews that had gathered on Roon to answer Revan's call. Revan never asked anything of them, save friendship when he'd saved them and they all respected him. They all loved him and would follow him into the heart of the Maw Cluster if he asked it. They'd walk into vacuum naked if he asked it and that was what Revan did. He asked, didn't order. An order meant something he wouldn't do himself and all of the Revanchists knew that Darth Revan would be there alongside them in the dirt and the mud and the sand and the cold and the heat and wherever they were, fighting at their shoulders and their backs and fierce as ever.

Revan was their inspiration, their hope in a better life and while they'd resigned themselves to whatever lot fate had cast them as slaves, Revan gave them hope for a new world. A better world than they'd lived in, one that they could be proud to have made.

Of course, Revan had planned all that. The slaves saw their positions in the galaxy overall as meaningless and by being a hero during the Mandalorian War, by standing alongside them and doing just as they did, Revan showed them they could be great as well. His intentions were more for his own benefit than theirs, though. Revan wanted a disposable army of loyal followers that would practically worship him and he'd found it in the dark and corrupted corners of the civilized galaxy. He'd taken advantage of the evils of sentient life and turned it if not into a force for good, a force for his will.

He had an affection for his followers, no doubt. Buried beneath the numbers and battle-plans and the terrible battles he fought, Revan did care for them. He just couldn't afford to be attached to them and if one died, or a hundred, or a thousand, he would go on. Recruits were easy enough to find and their loyalty was complete if he only cast aside the illusion of civilization and propriety expected of Jedi and Republic officers and walked alongside them, ate with them, fought with them, trained them.

Revan was a bastard, but a smart one. By sacrificing his own comfort, something he didn't care much for anyways; he had created an army of zealous followers and while not all of the freed slaves wanted to fight for him, the numbers that did far outweighed those that didn't.

Kashyyyk was a slave-world. Revan knew that for years and as he walked alongside Aven Sek'tai towards the Czerka controlled landing pad, he formed a plan in his mind. Czerka Corporation operated several illegal activities on Kashyyyk and with Aven backing him up, Revan knew he could start a revolt against the current Wookiee Chieftain Chundaar. It helped that Chundaar had contracted Kaera Nurr to kill a crazed Wookiee in the Shadowlands when she'd first come to Kashyyyk and Revan smirked humorlessly at the thought. Kaera's callous disregard for anything but the greater good would cost her and the Jedi on world.

"The transport is near the port. I had to infiltrate the assassin squad Malak sent for you and after word of Manaan reached us I knew where to find you. I've been in contact with other supporters and I am certain we can take the Academy on Korriban fairly easily. It is some distance from Roon, but if they could find support in Hutt space they could form a supply line that would run between Roon, Nar Shaddaa, Rusaan and Kashyyyk. By that point they'd only be a short distance from the heavily used Perlemian trade route and the dead zone of Mandalorian space to move to Korriban. Concord Dawn was a good stepping stone on the route and Revan silently mulled over the possibilities, neither he nor his Sith associate talking notice of the Jedi silently stalking them.

Sharing his thoughts with Aven, Revan considered their location in relation to the rest of the Sith. They'd be operating in the Mid Rim but with the Republic fleet stretched so thin, it wouldn't be a threat. Remnant Mandalorian raiders would be a problem, but not a serious one if Canderous would gain control of what remained of the Clans and take the Mandalore system. A thought occurred to Revan in that moment and he turned to his companion with a thoughtful frown.

"Onderon is close enough to Kashyyyk if we can find allies there. No doubt Queen Talia would be amendable to the savior of her world. Well, one of them. A shame about Taya."  
Aven detected a hint of sarcasm at the end of Revan's declaration and nodded her agreement. Taya Kenobi had been a damned good General and fighter, but she was too idealistic to fit the practicalities of a full scale war. She thought too much of the individual soldiers and not the unit. If you fought like an individual in war it got you killed. If you fought as a unit, you won. While Mandalorians had been known to go one-man or woman crusades into Republic lines, they were trained to fight as a unit and would only go berserk in the Republic lines if they had no choice, or a close friend was killed.

Even so, Mandalorians had something in the way of firepower, armor and skill that most Republic soldiers couldn't match... that sometimes ten Republic soldiers couldn't match.

"So how are we going to go about this?"  
Revan asked cautiously as he and Aven stood back from the gates leading into the Czerka compound and landing pad. Aven considered the automated turrets and closed gates and then Revan's injuries before frowning. Something was flickering on the edge of her senses and she turned to look questioningly at Revan, tilting her head subtly in the direction of the disturbance she sensed within the Force. Revan turned to look at Aven, frowning as he followed her gesture, carefully inspecting the void in the Force left by the Jedi's attempt to disguise her presence. The Jedi was closer than he'd thought and the deposed Dark Lord cursed his distraction. That kind of carelessness was what had gotten him shot on Manaan and on the _Ebon Hawk_ when they were fleeing Taris.

"The light can't hide when its surrounded by darkness."  
Revan stated, causing the Jedi's control to slip as surprise and fear shot through her. She'd been stalking the two Sith carefully, taking measures to stay out of their notice and they'd seemed unconcerned when they found her finally. Knowing it was childish and pointless to continue hiding, the Jedi stepped out into the dim lighting of the walkways, steeling herself for the fight that was to come.  
Of course, fighting was the last thing on Revan's mind as he casually waved his left hand, the Force stirring at the gesture and colliding solidly with the Jedi Knight. Thrown off balance, Shira fell to the ground painfully, crying out in surprise as she careened for the edge of the walkway, an invisible hand dragging her to her death.

"A moment."  
Aven said calmly, frowning at the Iridonian. Revan kept his hold on the Jedi, but stopped her short journey to the edge of the walkway. Frowning at his current second in command, Revan looked between the Twi'lek and the Zabrak with a frown.

"Friend of yours?"  
Revan asked. Aven shook her head and stalked to the Jedi's side, taking her lightsaber before nodding to Revan. Shira's eyes widened incredulously and she went over the edge of the walkway before she could voice her protests.  
Ignoring the Jedi's death, Aven moved to stand by Revan, offering the deposed Sith leader the weapon. Revan took the lightsaber carefully, testing its weight and spinning it in his fingers experimentally before nodding in approval to the care and skill taken in its design. Regardless of her faults for being a Jedi, Shira had made a fine weapon. Not even bothering to check the blade as the color meant nothing at that point so long as it worked, Revan checked the weapon he'd taken from the first Jedi he'd killed, making sure both were secured to his belt before he double-checked his respirator. He'd have to shut the damned thing off at some point if they were going to go about clearing the Czerka personnel stealthily.

Aven ran a similar check of her own gear, knowing it was important for her to know where all of her equipment was. Pulling a six-inch vibroblade from her hip, Aven cast a glance to where the Jedi had been thrown over the edge of the walkway, reaching into the Force to sense the still falling Jedi. Frowning, the Twi'lek waited for several moments before the light of the Jedi's aura flared, flickering for a brief moment before vanishing. Ignoring anything the Jedi's death made her feel as any who'd ended as many lives as she had would, Aven and Revan moved towards the Czerka landing pad.

Kaera Nurr jerked in surprise when she felt the death of Shira Sa'o and the Jedi Knight shuddered, closing her eyes and fighting off the grief and anger she felt. She swore to herself she would not rest until she ended the threat of Revan. A hush fell over the remaining Jedi on Kashyyyk, their eyes all turning to one another as they felt the death of another Jedi and they mourned silently while they waited for the transport being sent by their ship to reach them. There was no other way out of the Shadowlands except the way Revan and Shira had taken and none of the Jedi knew what awaited them at the top of the walkways.

Aven and Revan calmly approached the Czerka checkpoint to the port. Clad in his battle robes minus his mask, it was obvious who Revan had been and news of Darth Revan's reappearance and recapture had spread across the holonet quickly. As a result, the Czerka guards were tense when he approached and the face that Aven was clad in blacks and grays didn't help matters. They'd seen him being escorted by a dozen Jedi and returned with only one escort and the escort was not one he'd left with.

"We're going to have to hold you here until we check with the office."  
There were only two guards and they were inside the gates of the compound with enough cover from the autoturrets if they started shooting. With a simple flick of one of his wrists, Revan waited for the guard to turn and nod to his companion.

When the guard's eyes were turned for a split-second, Aven moved forward, her vibroblade dropping from where it was hidden behind her wrist to enter the side of the turned guard's throat. A forward and downward motion was all that was needed and the Twi'lek ignored the wide eyes of the second guard as she knelt beside the guard who was still in his death throes. Pressing the deactivation switch on small device on the man's wrist, the Twi'lek looked up to see Revan easing the body of the second guard to the ground, his Mandalorian wrist-blade covered in blood.

Without words, the two locked eyes and nodded to one another, Aven moving forward silently, her steps light enough that even her heavy boots made no sound. Revan followed moments later, a vibroblade from one of the guards in his hands. They left the turrets deactivated and the gates open. It wouldn't take long for Kashyyyk's native predators to find their way into the Czerka compound and chaos was always advantageous for infiltration.

Revan's fingers brushed the controls of his respirator, cutting off the noise and he moved with measured and familiar steps through the shadows and cover of the compound towards the cargo area. Aven went the opposite direction, towards the Czerka office and shifted from shadow to shadow, her dark clothing hiding her presence from wandering loading crews and guards. She was going to deal with the alarm system and the communications relay while Revan would secure their distraction to escape.

Nearly a hundred Wookiees were jammed into a set of forcefields, their massive forms packed and giving them little room to struggle. From what Revan could see, it looked as though a series of forcefield generators were lined along the walkways to a nearby landing pad where a wall of energy would raise, giving the Wookiees a path to the transports that would take them offworld to live the rest of their lives as slaves.

Feeling nothing for the plight of the Wookiees, Revan kept his focus on the five guards patrolling the edge of the semi-transparent forcefields. The light given off by the fields would present a problem with getting rid of all the guards but Revan wasn't interested in the guards danger to the Wookiees so much as their danger to himself. Testing the weight of the vibroblade in his hand, Revan judged the distance between himself and the nearest guard before tossing the weapon, taking only a second to make sure it hit its mark before he moved from his cover to the forcefield generator closest to him.

Pulling his lightsaber free, Revan drove the blade into the generator, ignoring the mixed looks of suspicion, fear and anger from the Wookiees before him. With practiced ease, Revan flicked on his respirator as he spun with his lightsaber, deflecting the shots sent his way as the Wookiees understood the situation. Roars and growls from the captive Wookiees filled the air and the four remaining Czerka guards managed to last nearly a minute under the mass of charging Wookiees before they were overrun.

Revan didn't stick around to see if the Wookiees would thank him or tear him apart and he sprinted to where he could sense Aven. The Twi'lek Dark Jedi was in the process of trying to skewer an Ithorian in a business suit when Revan entered and decapitated a guard that rushed from a side-office to see what the noise was about. Ignoring the Ithorian's pleas, Aven finally found the alien's heart and plunged her blade into the man's gray skin, scowling in annoyance.

"Took me a moment to find its heart. Didn't really have a throat to slit..."  
The Twi'lek looked embarrassed and Revan merely stared at Aven a moment in consideration before shrugging. Anatomy wasn't really his forte and he usually cut something's head off if he couldn't pierce the heart. Revan frowned at that a moment as he mused on disembowelment. He'd done so to a few enemies purely out of necessity but he normally aimed for a quick clean death or a disabling strike depending on the purpose of the fight.

"I'll take care of the communications array and check to make sure your ship is cleared to leave. No sense getting shot down by the computer if we don't have clearance."  
Aven nodded, moving to ready the ship. It would take a little care and time to get pass the rampaging Wookiees but she knew Revan would want to be in the sky as soon as was possible.

Revan dealt with the communicator and the lock on Aven's ship easily enough before he moved through the chaos erupting inside of the compound. Wookiees were battling with the Czerka guards and loading crews and from what Revan could see they had the upper hand. Feeling no sympathy for either side, Revan used the chaos to his advantage and was soon seated in the cockpit of the small transport Aven and the two Sith assassins that had accompanied her had used to reach Kashyyyk.

"Take us to the Wookiee village. Its likely word has reached the Czerka guards there, but I there are allies to recover."  
Aven didn't bother to nod to Revan's command, instead programming a course for Chundaar's village.


	31. Chapter 30: Introduction to Exile

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"It is so easy to just let go, to give in and do what is simple... what is easy. You must hold on to your faith, my friend. Hold on tightly to the knowledge that what we are trying to do is... not right, but necessary. The entire of civilization will fall if we don't make a stand now and make the galaxy strong enough to survive the True Sith. If they come and they win like the visions I saw on Malachor V said... the only hope we have of surviving is to be... like them. Power is all that matters to the Sith and if they see us as powerful... maybe they won't kill all of us. The only other hope we have is to scare the Hell out of them with just how evil we can be."_

_~Darth Revan to Darth Malak shortly after the destruction of Telos IV~_

Chapter 30: Introduction to Exile

By the time the Wookiees escaping Czerka's clutches reached Chundaar's village, their chieftain as already dead. A Jedi lightsaber lay on the ground amidst the bodies of Czerka guards and their chieftain, but the violet blade gave the newly-freed Wookiees pause for who to thank. A lightsaber was a Jedi's weapon, but the color of the blade was a color used by both Jedi and Sith orders. A color that showed neutrality.

Confused at the turn of events but grateful, the Wookiees accepted the message Shira Sa'o's lightsaber left. Do not pick a side. When the Jedi had returned to the village to ask the chieftain if Revan had come and why the three they'd left in the care of Chundaar were missing, no answer was given. Turning the Jedi away but not attacking them, the Wookiees took back their world and did not answer the Jedi's questions as to what had occurred at the Czerka docks.  
"This is ridiculous. Why don't we press this?"  
Kaera Nurr asked Jedi Master Quatra. As the ranking Jedi on the Republic cruiser, Juhani's former Jedi Master was at a loss. Revan had escaped and claimed the lives of a third of the Jedi sent to guard him. It was another in a long series of crushing defeats that was going to leave the galaxy a dark place if things didn't change soon. Dwelling on the Czerka situation, Quatra pondered what she knew of Juhani's life before the Jedi and what she had long suspected of Czerka Corporation and their presence on Kashyyyk.

"The Wookiees revolted, are you surprised?"  
Kaera looked confused for a moment, angry that Revan had evaded them and apparently staged a revolution on the world below them. Unable to grasp the concept that Revan had done something for the good of the people of Kashyyyk, she continued her debate with Quatra.

"They refused us entry in their village and when we went to the Czerka docks, we found only bodies and debris. If anything else, Master, we should speak to them of the incident at the docks. Their Chieftain was very forthcoming to me the first time I-"  
Quatra cut off Kaera with a raised hand, frowning at the Jedi Knight's anger.

"Peace, Kaera. It was obvious that the previous chieftain was selling his people off to appease Czerka Corporation. Revan took advantage of an already present problem and used a solution that allowed him an out. The Wookiees have a right to their own world and their own freedom. If you wish to march them before the Senate in chains than you must first create a time machine and convince them to join the Republic so that what was done on their world today would actually be a crime. This is not the Republic, Knight Nurr, nor is it our place to interfere. Be mindful of your thoughts, they betray you."  
Kaera looked as if she were going to argue, offended at the dressing down she'd received and angry that her charge had escaped her so easily. Bitting back a retort, the Jedi Knight tried to find something to calm her thoughts and sighed in frustration. Revan should have died when Malak betrayed him and she silently cursed Bastila Shan's compassion. If Revan had died, they might have stood a chance at winning the war. Bastila would be at the front instead of captured or on the run and they could have pushed the Sith back to the depths of the Outer Rim where they'd come from. Instead they were on the receiving end of a near-endless assault of massive armadas that were slowly and steadily breaking apart the infrastructure of the Republic and eating through the ranks of the Jedi Order. They wouldn't be a Republic or a Jedi Order if this went on much longer.

"We should see if Juhani knows where Revan would go."  
Quatra frowned at the sound of her former Padawan's name. She was wary of Juhani's time with Revan and her brief fall to the Darkside on Dantooine but hopeful the damage could be repaired. Mindful of a promise made long ago to a young Revan Qel-Droma, the Jedi Master shook her head.

"Juhani won't speak of it and it is wrong of us to ask her to betray a friend. Revan saved her from a life so horrific you can hardly imagine it. I can see it in the way you casually cast aside the needs of those on Kashyyyk or did you think I hadn't heard about the Mad-claw's death? You do know that was the former chieftain of the Wookiees, did you not? You do realize he was outcast by his own son Chundaar when he realized Chundaar was selling his people off as slaves?"  
Kaera fell silent, unable to look away from the Jedi Master's accusing eyes. The reality of the damage she'd done sank in slowly and the Jedi Knight shivered slightly at the implications. If Revan's explanations were to be believed he was doing what he had as a Dark Lord for the greater good and she had in a sense been following in his footsteps by killing the crazed Wookiee that had attacked her before even giving it a chance to explain itself.

The Wookiee had been insane with grief and shame over exiling his other son Zalbaar and Kaera had been so focused on the Star Forge that she hadn't even given the mad-claw any consideration. She'd struck him down without trying to disable, a kill move.  
Judging the look in Kaera's eyes for what it was, Quatra shook her head in disgust and looked back to the starfield before her. Carth Onasi would be joining them with a small scout-class ship from Manaan. The ship was unregistered and would not raise any flags when it took a small team to Kashyyyk to find the final Starmap.

"As a Jedi we are taught to respect not only all life, but also choice. The Order is failing because of Exar Kun and Revan Qel-Droma's wars. I remember when Revan first passed on Juhani to me after Taris, he spoke of the flaws of the Jedi Order. You have to understand your enemy if you are to defeat them, Kaera. Otherwise it makes you nothing but a mindless killer. Understand who they are, where they come from and what they have done. Respect the life they have lived and end it if it becomes to destructive. Revan told me; _The darkness cannot hide in the light, but the light can survive, even when it surrounded by darkness._"

The Jedi Master shook her head, ignoring the curious stares of the Jedi crewing the ship around her.

"Revan spoke of acceptance. When I look back on it now I am ashamed of the Order, especially given what the Covenant had done and how we'd all fallen behind Lucian because we feared the Revanchists. We feared another massacre like Taris. Revan was telling me that a Sith could ignore a Jedi surviving if the Jedi was strong enough, could even respect that Jedi but a Jedi could never accept a Sith. Our Orders are mirror images, two parts of the same whole. The Force will answer the call, be it light or dark and who are we to dictate what is right and wrong when we so very frequently are wrong?"

Sighing quietly, Quatra turned back to Kaera, a troubled frown on her lips.

"You need to take a step back and look at what you're becoming. Revan may be a cold-hearted bastard and a mass murdering sociopath but he's not an idiot. What he says usually has a reason, a very good reason if you look carefully enough and you should take any warning he gives you to heart. I don't meant to sound like I admire the man, far from it. I think what he has done to the galaxy is horrifying and wrong, but he was also one of the brightest Jedi to come to the Order. He had so many skills, so many strengths and they balanced out his weaknesses. He was smart in some areas, but an utter child in others. One thing Revan understood though, better than anyone else was war. Especially the tactical aspect. Do not underestimate him. As a single foe he can be captured or defeated, but when he is the leader, when he is the General or the Dark Lord he is unstoppable. I have seen battles where his followers threw themselves on blades to keep him alive and that is the danger of Revan. He inspires loyalty amongst his followers. I am certain you felt a kinship to him if not a measure of loyalty and respect when you worked with him on Taris?"  
Kaera nodded numbly to Quatra's question, a dawning realization spreading through her entire being.

"There was this old Mandalorian I came across on a mission once. He'd been wounded grievously in a battle long ago and was an invalid. I could see he hated life, hated that he was denied a warrior's death, but instead of letting it weigh him down, he thrived by spreading knowledge to his fellow Mandalorians. He spoke of the battles he'd fought and the knowledge he'd gained, giving advice to new warriors in the hopes that they would not repeat his mistakes. I found it oddly striking that he spoke so strongly, yet appeared so weak. But he commanded the respect of the other Mandalorians and I regret that I do not recall his name."  
Staring off into the starfield through the viewport, Quatra said nothing for a time, merely mulling over her memories thoughtfully before turning back to look at the distraught Jedi Knight beside her.  
"A Warrior does not hate his foes, he respects them. He learns from their deaths and he honors their memories in every move he makes, ever battle he fights. They are immortal then; the fallen and the victorious, for the warrior will spread his knowledge amongst his Clan. The warrior honors the fallen foe by carrying on the lessons learned from them. There is no shame in death, no shame in survival. If one kills an enemy, one learns the ways of the enemy. The way the enemy held their blade, the way their enemy moved, the way they fought. The enemy becomes the warrior, for the warrior will carry the battle with him until his end. To defeat an enemy is to become the enemy. Learn from your foes, lest you be the corpse rotting at their feet."

The words of the old, nameless Mandalorian still held the weight of wisdom and Quatra turned to stare at Kaera, smiling sadly at the younger Jedi.

"With each step we take in this war, we become more and more like our enemies and even if we survive them, we will still carry the scars... Still carry the knowledge of them when he fight our next battle. Mandalorians, for all their supposed savagery were a surprisingly learned people. Take care that in fighting a Sith Lord, you don't become one."  
Kaera could only nod at Quatra's words of warning, ashamed at her actions of recent. The other Jedi on the bridge looked thoughtful and pained, knowing the truth behind Quatra's words and wishing it were not so. The Mandalorians had shown those that fought them the flaws of weakness and those that fought them became more like them... became Sith. The Jedi of recent were being forced to fight like Revan had during the Mandalorian wars and it was lost on most that they were making some of the same mistakes, some of the same sacrifices Revan had made on his journey to the Darkside of the Force.

Even those that saw the destructive and treacherous path they walked could do little to stop it and with each battle fought in the Jedi Civil War, the once solid lines between Jedi and Sith grew all the more blurry.

Revan Qel-Droma and Aven Sek'tai sat in silence beside one another. The sounds of the Sith transport traveling along the bulkheads. The rear of the transport was shut off from the two; housing Canderous, Mission and Zalbaar, all of whom were sleeping restlessly after a ten hour flight from Kashyyyk.

"Do you remember Malachor V?"  
Revan asked quietly, his face pinched in a tight expression that gave the impression he had smelled something unpleasant. The deposed Dark Lord of the Sith had taken a shot to help metabolize the drugs the Jedi had put in his system and his gloved left hand was closed around a small injector that held a very potent pain killer that would send him into unconsciousness almost immediately. The Force around the former Jedi Knight bled red in pain and rage, though muted grays cast a nearly impenetrable shadow over his aura.  
Aven glanced at Revan, knowing he was still fighting off the drugs the Jedi had pumped into his system and knowing his words were important, though not ones he would exchange so easily with one who wasn't there. Nodding when Revan turned to meet her gaze, Aven set the autopilot of the transport, the hyperspace tunnel before them casting a pale blue-white glow across Revan's features.

"I had half of the fleet with me, chasing ghosts on the edge of the system when they hit Malachor V. We were chasing the Mandalorian's rear guard and cutting off their escape so I couldn't stop Taya before she activated the Mass Shadow Device. It was to be a last resort... I took those most loyal to me with me so they would know the fight was to the death. I expected to head off Mandalore's fleet before he reached Malachor V. Instead my ship was crippled on the edge of the system and Malak took control. By the time he got to Malachor V, I saw an opportunity that I couldn't pass up. Mandalore the Ultimate was still alive, watching the battle from the rear when the fleets met over Malachor and the world shattered under the increased gravity well..."  
Revan's brown eyes lacked any emotion, though they gleamed slightly at the memory with some unreadable light.

"I took a fighter by myself through what remained of the fleets, burned dozens Mandalorians from the skies along with their mounts before I reached Mandalore's ship. Then I cut my way through his guards and his warriors until it was only he and I. He was a strong opponent and he fell to me."

Revan's expression was blank, his eyes distant as he watched the hyperspace tunnel before him. A muscle twitched in the former General's jaw as he shifted through his memories and the sharp aches and pains wracking his injured body.

"To this day I don't know how I fought my way through that deathtrap. How I avoided the deaths that befell billions that day. The skies, do you remember the how they burned with the bodies and ships? There were so many... so very many of them."  
Aven closed her eyes, allowing herself to shudder at the memory. The entire of the Republic's active fleet was at Malachor V, outnumbering the Mandalorians ten to one. Years of warfare had taken their toll on the Clans but a billion Mandalorians with ships to carry them had been there, shouting for the blood of the Republic and the Jedi. The entire of a race of warriors, the strongest that had survived two decades of constant war and battles the likes of which would likely never be seen again had filled the skies around Malachor V. In an instant, with the decision of the now Exiled General of Revan's army, the battle had ground to a momentary halt as billions were killed in the blink of an eye. Murdered by a weapon of such mass destruction it crushed not only the two fleets facing off against one another, but also the world of Malachor V itself.

It had looked akin to a cracked egg surrounded by what looked like its own starfield from a distance. That starfield was actually the hulls of millions of ships that marked the graves of billions of soldiers and warriors.

Even after the device went off the battle had been fierce. Taya's fleet had been losing the battle and she had fallen to the contingency plan, using the last resort when Malak and Revan and the five billion soldiers they commanded between them had been absent for too long. It had been desperate and it had worked in the end, though barely.

Malak had come with the rest of the fleet, tearing into the Mandalorian's scattered lines and in the hours that followed the activation of the Mass Shadow Generator, the Mandalorian race ceased to exist as a power in the galaxy and became only a handful. A paltry million set down their weapons while hundreds of thousands fled or took their own lives in shame. A million from a race that had numbered nearly six billion a decade before and was nearly twice that size when Exar Kun and Ulic Qel-Droma had made their war on the Jedi and the Republic.

The difference between the Mandalorian war and the Jedi Civil war lay in the civilian cost. Revan and later Malak had targeted populated worlds, burning them to ashes and glass as a desperate strategy to throw off the True Sith and weaken their advantage over the Jedi and Revan's Sith.

There simply weren't enough soldiers to fight on the scale of which the Republic had when Revan and Malak disappeared. The death count between the Mandalorian and Jedi Civil wars was estimated to be over a trillion and it grew by billions with each world Malak erased from the galaxy.

It was a strategy that was working, despite how horrific and destructive it was and from the dark reaches of unknown space, the True Sith's spies looked upon the actions of the other Sith with horror. If the protectors that had turned would do such things to one another, what would they do to the Sith when the war that had been brewing for millennia began?

"We did what was necessary, Milord. We did what needed to be done."  
Aven's voice was strong and assured in their purpose, though her eyes were pained and filled with doubt. When she looked to Revan, the doubt vanished. Revan had led them on their crusade against the Republic and the Jedi Order, on their strategy to subvert the coming war with the True Sith and they had done their jobs as well as they could. They spread chaos and death and destruction and darkness to every corner of the galaxy while honing their skills and living through superior strength when their enemies fell. It was necessary... and no one would convince Aven Sek'tai otherwise.

Atton 'Jaq' Rand sat in a dim bar in the bowels of Nar Shadaa with a frown on his face as he stared at the bright lights and newsfeeds from the holonet. A special report of an incident between Jedi and Sith on Manaan would have been commonplace if not for the name and the unmistakable picture of an armored man with dark, unkempt hair, a goatee that was marred with stubble. Pale skin and dead brown eyes made for an unflattering image, but the face. The face was of a man who had been thought dead for the better part of a year.

"Darth Revan captured on Manaan."  
Atton read aloud, his eyes locked with the image until it was removed to show a holofeed of the battle that had taken place on Manaan. He recognized the Jedi battling with Revan and flinched violently when he saw Nomi Sunrider amongst them. He'd tortured the Jedi Grandmaster's daughter to death on the very moon he was on and he wondered why he remained so close to something he was honestly ashamed of.

_"A meaningless attempt at atonement."  
_The voice in his mind was of the man battling Jedi on the newsfeed and Atton slammed back his drink, ordering another stiff Corellian ale to push back the thought of Vima Sunrider's eyes staring at him with understanding and compassion as he took her life from her piece by piece as he had been trained.  
Anger at the man in the image before him seized the former Sith assassin and Atton glared before the emotion passed and he slumped in defeat. Revan was gone, taken by the Jedi and he'd been enraged. All of the other Revanchist Sith had and they'd taken every opportunity to pay the Jedi Order and the traitor Sith back.

_"But Vima Sunrider was a friend. An ally. A voice of understanding and reason within the Order."  
_Revan's voice again echoed in his mind and Atton took in a calming breath, allowing his training to filter out his emotions as he buried them beneath his resentment of the Jedi. They were weak. They were liars. They had taken Revan from the Sith, taken their Emperor, their Lord, their very cause and it had felt as if someone had torn out his heart when he'd heard Darth Revan was dead. Darth Revan couldn't be dead, Revan was their leader, their General, their Master. Revan was the Sith, Revan made them more than just mindless killers and murderers and when he'd gone, so had the illusion.

They were bastards and murderers and nightmares. They had made themselves demons and had turned on the very thing they sought to protect, but with a man like Revan leading them they hadn't seen the means or the path they walked, only the end. They were fighting to better the galaxy, to make it stronger.

Now there was no cause, no leader and nothing to make what they had done to the Republic and the Jedi Order and themselves right and Atton swallowed another drink, allowing his anger to control him. He would never be able to live with himself, but he couldn't kill himself either. He wanted to end himself, but he didn't want to die. If it made him a coward then he was a coward, but a live one and Atton Rand would never follow someone else again. He'd make his own way, his own decisions and not have his thoughts clouded by loyalty to a man who was larger than life. A man who seemed to come back from the dead when the galaxy was at its darkest and Atton took another drink, pausing to raise it to Revan in a farewell salute.

"Hail Lord Revan."  
Atton muttered tonelessly, downing the drink and tossing a few credits to the bar to cover his tab. Leaving the bar behind him, Atton searched the docks for work, his funds nearly gone after his flight from the Revanchist Sith base on the smuggler's moon. He wished Revan luck, but he couldn't stomach the war anymore. It had run its course for the man and he looked only to his own needs.

After a day's search, the former Sith soldier secured a job to pilot a freighter between the Peragus mining colony and Nar Shadaa that looked to be fairly permanent and paid enough to cover his basic needs as well as a bar tab. Settling into a new life, Atton pushed all thoughts of Jedi and Sith and a beautiful woman he had tortured and murdered in the name of revenge from his mind. He couldn't think of it and keep his food and drink down at the same time.

At the far edge of Republic space, in the isolated region deep within Hutt space, a former Jedi Knight and General calmly walked through a sparsely populated spaceport on the moon of Da Soocha V. The star Cyax cast a pale blue glow over the Hutt controlled moon and the world of Da Soocha was visible in the thin sky above. The former Jedi Knight was wearing a scowl as her long strawberry-blonde hair whipped in the wind behind her. She'd been reduced to a smuggler, not even a captain of a smuggling vessel.

For the life of her, Taya Kenobi could not find where she had gone wrong. She had been a respected Jedi Knight once and then she had been a somewhat popular General in the Revanchists before she had given the order over Malachor V to use the Mass Shadow Device. Pushing back the dark memories of a battle in a war best left forgotten, the young woman stopped as she spotted her contact and stood tall, her right hand dropping to the blaster pistol on her hip that she had been forced to learn to use when her aptitude with a lightsaber dropped considerably with her loss of the Force.

"I'm from the _Star Runner_ on behalf of Captain Savi'tal. We're docked at port Three-Two-A on the north docks. Captain says the _cargo_ is clear for your people whenever we get our payment."  
The contact was a sleazy-looking Arkanian with a slight overbite that Taya ignored. She kept her eyes on the contacts, reading as best she could his intent. When the contact simply nodded and handed her a datapad with a signed transfer order and the agreed upon credits she relaxed and took her hand from her weapon. Nodding farewell, the Exile moved back to her ship, unable to keep the scowl from her lips.

It was nice to have an easy drop off. Any dealings in Hutt space went extremely well when the Hutts were involved in the shipping of the spice from Kessel but the former Jedi Knight still couldn't get past the injustice of it all. She had given up her life to fight the Mandalorian threat and she had been stripped of her skills and powers and thrown to the wayside in the wake of the war's end to become a spice smuggler.

She'd chosen to work in Hutt Space though, as it was as far from the Republic as one could get while still being familiar. She had traveled the systems for a time before she had simply grown disgusted in the Republic and the painful reminders of the life she once had, the army she had once commanded and the friends she had lost when they'd left beyond the Rim to chase the Mandalorian threat. She had wanted to go with Revan and Alec, but Alec had said no. Alec had sent her back to the Council and Revan...

Taya Kenobi didn't know what to think of Revan. He had earned the respect of all those who served under him and had sacrificed more in the war than anyone else who still breathed but his eyes were different after Malachor V. She had thought it was her newly Force-blind status that had brought about the change in her view of Revan, but when she had spoken to him in his quarters on his ship she had wished he was wearing that damned mask he had worn since the beginning of the war. His eyes had frightened her with their intensity. He had looked at her, through her and she lacked the mental shields to block him. He hadn't violated her mind exactly, but it had seemed like he was looking into her very soul, measuring her worth and she had seen disappointment and disgust in his eyes.

She had thought Revan was a friend, but he had said nothing to her then, not afterwards. Alec had tried, he always tried to do what was right but it hadn't been enough and Revan was pressing for a pursuit of the fleeing Mandalorians.

_"What is the point, Revan? We've already annihilated them. Anything else we do to what sad remnants remain is just a cruelty."  
_She remembered her words to him and when he'd met her eyes and said nothing, merely stared at her through blank eyes she knew he didn't care. He had long ago lost the spark that made him a good man and a great leader and had become something more... but also something less. She couldn't name it, couldn't sense what he was feeling or if he had touched Darkness, but his eyes had told her more than any words could and she had left them and returned to the Jedi, only to be cast aside yet again.

Pushing back her dark thoughts, Taya glanced out of the corner of her eye at a holonet broadcast and stopped dead in her tracks, nearly dropping the datapad in her hand as she stared at the image of Revan fighting a group of very recognizable Jedi Masters. She couldn't read the text from where she stood and didn't feel compelled to work her way into the crowded bar the broadcast was being shown in, but she couldn't look away from what she was sure would be her friend's death.

Shivering, Taya closed her eyes and shook her head, pushing back the image and steeling herself. Despite how much of a bastard he'd been after Malachor V, Revan had been like a brother to her. She couldn't watch anymore of the recording. She'd seen he was only wearing light robes and his gauntlets and she knew Kavar could probably take her friend in a one on one duel, not counting the advantage having Atris and Nomi Sunrider at his side would entail. Glancing back at the holofeed, the former Jedi Knight stopped again, seeing Nomi's emerald lightsaber piercing Revan's unprotected chest and seeing his familiar features twisted in disbelief as he slid down to the ground, blood marring the gray wall he'd fallen against.

"There is no death..."  
The Exile muttered with a sneer as she turned from the image again, not seeing the rest of Revan's stand on Manaan before his capture. She'd heard of a war between Jedi and had assumed the remnants of the Jedi Covenant had thrown the Order into chaos. She had known on an entirely unconscious level that Revan and Alec would be at the heart of the conflict but she hadn't thought it would degrade to the point of someone as respected as Nomi Sunrider or Kavar skewering General Revan Bloodraven like some criminal.

Revan would have never fought them without good cause and the Exiled Jedi Knight was grateful for the first time since her banishment from the Jedi Order. She would never be able to face the Jedi without anger again.

AN: Just a bit of a filler chapter to introduce the Exile and Atton more thoroughly. Hope you enjoyed it.


	32. Chapter 31: Korriban

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"Goddamnit Kaera, he's my son! I can't leave him in this place! I can't not try to save him. What would that make me if I didn't try to save my son? Even if he's lost and even if I thought he was dead, he's alive now and that sounds like a second chance to me. Kaera... please... I- I won't jeopardize the mission, but he's my __**son!**__ I can't just leave him there without trying."  
~Carth Onasi to Kaera Nurr on Korriban while searching for the final Starmap~_

Chapter 31: Korriban

Korriban was about as peaceful as it could be for a Sith world. Creatures stalked the dark places of the world preying upon one another as they all tried to survive while students at the Sith Academy followed their example, ruthlessly vying for power and prestige within the ancient walls and tombs of the Valley of the Sith Lords.

It came as a surprise to all present when contact with the small detachment of Sith ships protecting the world was lost. Surprises were rarely good things when involving Sith and the entire of the planet went on alert. The Academy's doors were sealed and the settlement of Dreshdae locked down, closing its small port and increasing its security. Rumors spread of a civil war within the Sith Empire amongst the spacers and settlers of the small port. Darth Revan's capture on Manaan was widespread and it brought up doubts within the Empire as to Malak's competence. Malak of course crushed all opposition to him ruthlessly, but from afar. It seemed the Dark Lord of the Sith had bunkered down within the Star Forge out of paranoia with his new apprentice and a good chunk of the Sith Fleet while the rest of the Empire was left to hold its own or rot.

The response within the Empire to Malak's strategy to fight the backlash of Revan's survival was mixed. The most loyal of the Empire was with Malak over Rakata Prime and they simply dug in on the world while Malak used the Star Forge to build up an endless fleet that would crush any and all opposition to him in a single battle.

Impatience was Malak's greatest flaw and while he could exercise it when necessary, power had gone to his head and he wanted results instantly. Or at completely unreasonable timetables. Malak was steadily losing his iron hold over the Empire and it was all because the belief of the vast majority of the Sith had been that Malak was stronger than Revan if his master hadn't survived his betrayal... Revan had, though and dissent was filling the ranks of the Empire.

Hovering over Korriban, Admiral Saul Karath frowned in annoyance as he stared down at the nearly dead world. The _Leviathan_ had been pulled from active duty with Malak's fleet shortly before the assault on Dantooine and Malak had taken to a new supreme commander and a new flagship for the Sith Empire. It did not bode well for the turned Republic soldier and Saul took the post of protecting Korriban lightly, his mind playing over how Malak would have him disposed of. Malak's casual replacement of Darth Bandon was a clear message to Saul over the importance of his own position as was his brief and one-sided argument over the wisdom of Taris' destruction.

He'd destroyed his own homeworld at Revan's and Malak's orders and had betrayed Revan at Malak's orders. These were all things that had secured him his own personal estate in Hell, but Saul Karath had assumed he mattered to the Empire. That his willingness to follow Malak first and then Revan and his questioning of potentially unpopular orders would be an asset. Apparently any favor he had gained in the Empire for Telos and when he'd carried out Malak's orders to fire on the _Revenge_ had evaporated and he was left feeling as if he were a prisoner awaiting execution.

_"Its no more than I deserve..."  
_Saul mused to himself as he observed Korriban calmly. He had made peace with the fact that he was not a good man long ago and he'd learned from his mistakes along the way. He knew enough to know his remaining within Malak's Sith Empire would be a conscious decision to die and when a small fleet of vessels, most Sith in design appeared on the edge of the Korriban system, Karath ordered a communications blackout between Korriban and the small fleet he was reduced to controlling. He would wait and see who was coming before he made a decision. Calling for help from nearby Sith patrols would only be seen as weakness and Karath began to mull over the makeup of his fleet while he watched the hologram in the center of his bridge light up and show the approaching and yet unannounced fleet.

Aven Sek'tai stood stiffly beside Revan on the flagship of their small fleet, her black eyes focused on the distant speck of Korriban hanging in space before them. All around her, soldiers clad in modified Sith armor worked the controls of the _Reclaimer_ while Darth Revan stood clad in his battle robes, arms crossed as he calmly observed the actions of the Revanchist Sith.

The Revanchist Sith soldiers wore customized armor to separate themselves from the other Sith. Blood red armor crafted from Mandalorian metal made for a fearsome appearance as it rested over black pressurized bodysuits. Full helmets that resembled Mandalorian neocrusader armor covered the soldier's faces, the designs similar to Revan's mask, though more generic in their red and black patterns.

Revan himself was wearing a pressure suit beneath his armor and robes, a combination of Mandalorian metal, comfortable cloth and protective leather making certain the armor did not wear in the wrong places of the bodysuit. A small pressurized rubber head covering was obscured beneath the Dark Lord's hooded cloak and his mask's surface was a mixture of blood red and black, the colors no longer faded as his old armor was long gone.

"Is that the _Leviathan_?"  
Revan questioned when he approached the holographic display of the system at the center of his flagship's bridge. Aven nodded as she read the transponder signal given off by the Sith Fleet's former flagship and the Twi'lek glanced at Revan curiously, her expression carefully closed off as she awaited orders. She had some reservations as to Revan's competence as a Commander after what the Jedi had done to his mind, but it seemed those reservations were unfounded. Revan recognized the _Leviathan_ through his mask's passive sensors and she could already sense a strategy forming within the Revanchist leader's mind.

"How loyal do you suppose Karath is after being left to guard this hole with a handful of ships?"  
Revan asked with a hint of amusement that Aven knew he didn't feel. A noncommital grunt answered Revan and Aven turned to see Canderous Ordo clad in a full set of Revanchist Sith armor minus a helm. She knew enough of Canderous and Revan's dealings to know the Mandalorian refused to wear any helm but Mandalore's and that the helm was lost to them, likely on Rakata Prime with the _Ebon Hawk_. She'd have to look into finding the transport that had housed her Master when the time came.

"Saul Karath always enjoyed calling the shots, Milord. He will no doubt be receptive to an... invitation from the Revanchists. I hear Malak was unhappy with Karath after Taris and his loyalty was called into question."  
Revan smirked, his mind filing away Carth Onasi's personal grudge with the Sith Admiral as unimportant. He owed Carth nothing but a blaster to the gut and he wouldn't let some phantom emotion cloud his judgement. His decision made, Revan turned to Aven and frowned at the Twi'lek's searching gaze. Catching on to Revan's questioning look, Aven quickly stopped reading his aura and reassured herself that her Lord was fit for command. She was more worried for his health, mental and physical than she was over the possibility of a bad decision being made.  
As with all soldiers, she understood that no battle strategy survived an encounter with the enemy and she wouldn't judge Revan on such seemingly disloyal grounds. He was the rightful Sith Emperor and to question him was to question her chosen way of life.

"Send to Commander of _Leviathan_. The Revanchists offer you a position in the new Order. Make sure you throw my name around a bit. It usually gets immediate results."  
Revan ordered, his tone light as he turned back to the viewport and the distant specks of the other Sith ships. The results his name brought were usually violent, but they came quickly and Revan was feeling a tad bit impatient after recovering from the injuries he'd received on Manaan and aggravated on Kashyyyk. Thinking of Kashyyyk, Revan's mind wandered to Zalbaar and Mission and he decided to pay them a visit before making the trip to Korriban's surface.  
The Wookiee had been troubled since leaving his homeworld and learning of the fate of his father and Revan did not want the emotional baggage clouding his indebted protector's thoughts. Zalbaar needed to be

thinking clearly if he was to have any value to Revan. Loyalty only went so far.  
Mission was another concern of Revan's. The Twi'lek girl was soft-hearted and Revan unconsciously relied on the girl as a sort of moral compass with the absence of Bastila. He knew some of the things he did were horrifying and wrong, but the bare hint of emotions he felt made them all meaningless. Mission had played a part in saving him on Dantooine and was loyal. He owed the girl if nothing else and he decided that whatever upset the Twi'lek to the point of expelling her breakfast would probably be something he shouldn't be doing on a regular basis.

Torture was out, apparently as Mission had seen the sad remains of Xor and had cried for a bit over it. Revan did not see why, even if he had been functioning emotionally he felt no sympathy for Xor and the slaver was present on his flagship only to fulfil the promise Revan made to Juhani on Manaan. He had promised the Cathar Xor's life and he would wait until he found Juhani again. Until then, HK-47 was enjoying making the Twi'lek slaver's existence one of agonizing and unending pain. The likes of which one never grew accustomed to. Death would be a kindness to Xor that he did not deserve, but Revan knew Juhani would kill the man for what he had done to her family on Taris.

He had been there for some of it after all and had seen the end results of his assault on the Cathar. It was one of his first acts of rage and he marveled at his own personal control. Xor should have been dead by all rights, but Revan had believed in the Jedi Code back then and had stayed a killing blow in the hopes that justice would be served.

_"Guess we'll make our own justice."_

The Dark Lord mused, unable to form a smirk, but sensing a bit of satisfaction within his broken mind. Still, it had upset Mission and he wasn't going out of his way to hurt barely adolescent girls like Xor had... Ever. Deciding it was time to give Mission a bit of extra training, Revan turned to catch Aven's eyes and motioned for the Twi'lek Revanchist Sith to follow him to where Mission and Zalbaar were sharing their lodging. Whatever Saul Karath decided would play out without him. He didn't control how his ships fired and received fire and Saul's fleet was so small that strategy was an unnecessary complication. Overwhelming numbers and firepower were on their side for once and Revan was unconcerned over the battle that might come. His followers were competent enough to carry on without him and it would be an insult to them to think they needed his input on such a small incident.

"I think its time I trained the girl, Mission. She has some raw skill and a little knowledge of Echani and Mandalorian forms from her time with me since Taris, but she has never had to hold her own and I.. well, I wouldn't say I worry about her. She has unused potential though, even if she is practically Force-blind and I want her to fulfil that potential if she is to have a place here."  
Aven nodded wordlessly, her own doubts as to Mission's importance kept to herself. She would reserve judgement of the Twi'lek teen's importance until she saw the girl in action. Revan had a hint of respect in his tone over the young Twi'lek's natural abilities and Aven Sek'tai knew there was something in the girl that would be of use to the Revanchists if she were a companion of Revan's and accepted the imprisonment from the Jedi between Manaan and Kashyyyk in favor of betraying Revan. If nothing else, Mission Vao was loyal to Revan and Aven could appreciate that. Revan had saved her after all and he could never have too many followers.

Carth Onasi cursed to himself as he stood stiffly at attention beside Kaera Nurr. The Jedi Knight was clad comfortably in a set of black Jedi robes, her lightsaber's crystal changed to a violet blade since she refused to use red. Even in the black robes, the Jedi Knight looked out of place and Carth fought to keep his own unease down as he fell into the role of escort. He was wearing a mercenary outfit minus his orange jacket that held too much love for black, though the gray long sleeved shirt he was wearing was tolerable he thought the black duster he wore was overkill. His pistols were visible as were a few grenades and he'd allowed his well-trimmed beard to grow a little unkempt to complete the image. The permanent scowl on his face and his tense posture actually helped to pull off his act and Carth merely watched Kaera's back while the Jedi negotiated with an off-duty Sith instructor by the name of Yuthura Ban for entrance into the Academy.

They'd managed to get a captured smuggler's ship from the Republic impound shipyard and have it shipped to Manaan before Carth made the journey himself to Kashyyyk where he expected to meet up with Kaera on the Jedi cruiser with Revan still captured and the Starmap's information from the Wookiee homeworld. Instead, he'd found the others that had chosen to follow Revan were as long gone as the former Sith Lord himself and that only Juhani remained behind. The Cathar knew nothing of Revan's escape until after the fact and Carth had reluctantly let his anger over the issue slide in favor of finding the last Starmap and ending the threat of the Star Forge once and for all. Aside from a weird vibes he was getting from Kaera when she greeted him unprofessionally on the Jedi controlled cruiser it was all he really had going for him besides revenge.

Of course, hearing Saul Karath was in orbit over Korriban with a small Sith patrol group was filling his heads with all kinds of revenge-heavy fantasies and Carth did not have to pretend to be angry when Yuthura curiously scanned his aura. His anger pulled off Kaera's rouse and despite her lack of faith in Kaera Nurr's intentions to join the Sith, Yuthura saw some potential for Carth. He lacked a significant Force-presence, but his anger ran deep and the Twi'lek Sith Instructor could appreciate that.

Then of course the port went on a security lockdown and a Cathar had joined the two newcomers, quietly conversing with the two before she departed. Yuthura's eyes followed the Cathar and she saw more potential in the young woman than she could in both Carth and Kaera combined. Juhani had the look, the aura of a former slave and Yuthura felt a kinship to the Cathar and blatantly followed the woman with her violet eyes before turning her attention to Kaera.

"Who was your friend? I absolutely must meet her."  
Kaera stiffened slightly, glancing where Juhani had gone before turning to stare hard at Yuthura Ban's face.

"She's just a slave. Don't worry about her."  
The Jedi stated coldly, her blue eyes hard and unmoving in the face of Yuthura's disgusted sneer. The Sith Instructor stood calmly, finishing her drink before heading out of the bar. She had to get back to the Academy and see what the lockdown was about before she could entertain the notion of a potential apprentice.

"I used to be a slave myself."  
The Twi'lek stated casually, though her voice held an undercurrent of rage that caused Kaera to flinch slightly. Waiting until the Sith was gone, Carth turned to stare at Kaera carefully with a frown on his face.

"Nice act, Kaera. I think you might have blown this little mission."  
The Republic Commander stated calmly, his voice edging with annoyance. He was professional enough not to berate the Jedi, but he wasn't happy with Kaera's attitude since Kashyyyk. Sighing, Kaera reluctantly nodded to Carth's statement, her face pinched in worry before she sensed something that made her eyes widen incredulously. Juhani was with them unaccompanied to prove herself to the Jedi. The Cathar had stated she wasn't interested in becoming a Sith and was seeking a more peaceful path than what the Jedi and Sith were following at the time. Quatra had appealed to the Council for her former Padawan and the Council agreed that if Juhani proved an asset on the mission to Korriban and did fall under the sway of the Sith that she would be granted a pardon from her actions on Dantooine though she would never be officially recognized as a Jedi Knight and would be left to her own devices after.  
A small Republic Task Force was waiting on the edge of the Korriban system in case Juhani proved untrustworthy and the mission was found to be compromised. It was a backup plan and a worst-case scenario but Juhani seemed genuinely sincere in her wish to be if nothing else a Gray Jedi and the Council was willing to take the risk. They'd lost too many in the wars and if Juhani could be saved, they were willing to take a risk for her.  
Kaera thought it was a foolish decision, but she deferred to the Council's wisdom and hoped for the best while she prepared for the worst. Juhani was still clad in a simple set of black robes from her brief fall on Dantooine and their wear had given her the appearance of a slave. Kaera had used the image to what she thought was her advantage and had alienated herself from the Sith that might have gotten them into the Academy and subsequently the Valley of the Dark Lord quietly. Unwilling to entertain the thought of Juhani going in to the Academy in her stead, Kaera debated her option as she tried to puzzle out the presence she felt in the Force overhead. Whatever Revan was doing in the system couldn't be in their favor and she wondered if she should call in the Task Force before a loudspeaker sounded over the commotion in the bar and the settlement.

"Attention, may I have your attention. Lord Revan has returned to us at the head of a powerful fleet. All Sith hail the return of Revan! The True Lord of the Sith!"  
The voice was of Uthar Wynn, Master of the Sith Academy and there was an undercurrent of worry in his tone as he passed along the orders from the fleet above to stand down. Pushing aside his fears in favor of making a show of welcoming Revan so his life would be spared the coming purge, Uthar shifted his loyalties from Malak to Revan as easily as he once had Revan to Malak over a year before.

"Admiral Saul Karath will be giving the returned Lord of the Sith a personal inspection of the settlement and the Academy and I ask you all to be on your best behavior. Need I remind you that this is **Revan **and not some fool upstart playing at Emperor. Think of your own heads if nothing else."  
Knowing Revan appreciated blunt honesty, Uthar made no show of hiding his fears as he moved from his quarters and the communications array to the center of the Academy where his students were gathering. Yuthura had just entered and was wearing a surprised, but wary expression and Uthar nodded to his second with a frown, sensing some plot against him in the Twi'lek's mind fall away at the thought of Revan's return. He would have killed her outright if he had a better replacement but Uthar was in no mood to search and waited to see who Yuthura would find acceptable to replace her. After all, they would be trading one master for another and still have the same position. It would work in whoever replaced Yuthura's favor in the end and Uthar knew enough of usurping a superior to know a forming coupe when he saw one.

Carth's hand dropped to his blaster at the announcement that Darth Revan and Saul Karath would be on Korriban and his eyes blanked at the thought of killing the man who had betrayed his homeworld and slaughtered his family. Revan, Carth wasn't sure of. The Sith Lord had ordered Telos' destruction, but it had been Saul Karath that had given the codes to Malak's fleet that disabled Telos' defense system and it was Saul Karath who ordered his own fleet to join the Sith and bombard Telos with Malak there enforcing Revan's proclamation. They hadn't just been following orders since both had since betrayed Revan and Carth couldn't summon up the red haze of rage at the thought of Revan that Malak and Saul inspired.

Revan Qel-Droma or Bloodraven or Katarn or whoever the Hell the man was fell into the category of the criminally insane in Carth's mind and he wondered if there were any truly uncorrupt courts in the galaxy that could deny an insanity plea from Revan if the former Jedi Knight and apparently returning Dark Lord of the Sith were to make a case of his mental condition. What the Jedi had done to Revan's mind was criminal and altered the man irrevocably and Carth wondered how much was actually Revan and not some echo of the man who'd defeated Mandalore the Ultimate and betrayed the Republic to become an Emperor and Warlord. Even when he was literally frothing at the mouth in rage, the Revan he met on Taris was in complete and total control of himself and his actions, despite an unstable and damaged mind and Carth frowned at the implications.

An invisible Empire with a vast and overwhelming fleet would have been laughable nearly two decades before, when he had been a fresh recruit with a newborn son and a wife back on Telos, but then the Mandalorians came. After the Mandalorians came Revan and Malak and the vast fleet they'd assembled beyond the Republic and the rest of the galaxy's eyes and Carth wondered if there was some actual merit to the claims he'd heard Revan had made of a _True _Sith Empire that lay in wait beyond the Republic, seeking vengeance for the destruction of the Sith race on Ziost and Korriban over a thousand years before. A thousand years was a long time to hold a grudge, but genocide was a touchy subject and Carth lowered his head slightly at the thought. The world he was standing on was once at the heart of an Ancient Empire of Sith that had thrived on the harsh world's inhospitable climate. A climate that had only in recent centuries returned to what it had once been like in the time of the Ancient Sith Empire. It was almost a cruel parody of Exar Kun's death, though Exar's end had been at his own power and not because of a Republic fleet bombarding the Sith settlements and hunting them down like animals.

From what he remembered, Carth knew that most of the Sith that had survived the Great Hyperspace war were closer to humans than their ancestors and they'd simply bled into the background of the galaxy, their bloodlines thinning over the centuries until the only pure form of Sith were the Massassi that had died off four decades before on Yavin IV in the service of Exar Kun. The thought that actual Sith blood flowed through the veins of some of the people around him caused the Republic soldier to frown thoughtfully. He couldn't understand what the Hell was bothering Revan so much about a bunch of near-humans with a predilection for violence. If Revan's Mandalorian heritage was to be called in to play, Carth figured Revan would get along with the _True _Sith well enough.

Of course, Revan feared the purebred Sith that were the head of the True Sith Empire. They enslaved the lesser bloodlines of half-breeds and offshoots that had formed thousands of years before when the exiled Dark Jedi fleeing the aftermath of the Battle of Corbos had found their people and while they understood the necessity for cooperation between the different _species_ of Sith, they formed a noble hierarchy subordinate to the Dark Lord of the Sith and the Sith Council. The Council consisted only of pureblooded Sith, though the position of Dark Lord was always traditionally held by the most powerful, a True Sith had held the title of Sith Emperor since their flight from their collapsing Empire a thousand years before. The True Sith were not looking for peace after a thousand years, but a fight that would plunge the galaxy into a darkness that it would not soon overcome. Perhaps never overcome.

The lockdown on Dreshdae only ended when Saul Karath's transport landed and two dozen silver-armored Sith troopers and six red-armored elites flanked him in the landing pad set aside for Revan's arrival. All of the soldiers stood in formation, to the left of the doorway to the small settlement and waited patiently at attention with Saul standing at the head of the column. Several silent minutes passed before a detachment from the Sith Academy arrived and twenty gray-uniformed Dark Jedi took positions opposite of the soldiers. Ten Dark Jedi clad in shades of black, gray and red also took positions and Uthar and Yuthura took their positions beside Saul Karath before the doorway leading to Dreshdae and between the two Sith columns.

"You think he's going to kill any of us?"  
One of the Sith soldiers whispered to another, knowing the tendency for Sith Lords to execute underlings at a whim. Malak had done it less than Bandon, but he had killed without provocation as his dead apprentice had since becoming Dark Lord. Revan had been known to execute officers for gross incompetence, but skipped the whole Sith-tantrums as the soldiers of the Empire had coined the incidents.

The answer to the Sith soldier's nervous question never came as a transport came into view, its hull painted in a red and black pattern rather than the standard gray. All of the gathered Sith stiffened and took tense stances, their eyes forward as they all came to attention. Not all had served the Sith when Revan had been the Dark Lord, but those that did remembered Revan's commanding presence well enough.

A chill fell over the Sith when the transport touched down and its ramp lowered. Before the ramp even hit the ground, a two meters of rust-colored metal was out of the transport and scanning the landing area for explosives. HK-47 lifted his Aratech sniper rifle, its well-maintained tri-lite gleaming in Korriban's sun as it scanned the surrounding rooftops and cliff sides for any distortions caused by stealth fields. Reading no threats, HK lowered his rifle and stood straighter, his head swiveling to turn to stare directly at Saul Karath.

"Assessment: No immediate threats detected, master."  
The Sith gathered remembered stories of Darth Revan's personal assassin droid and all stared at the machine with mixtures of unease, anticipation and outright terror. Moments later, Aven Sek'tai led a bloodied and battered wreck of a creature that had once been a Twi'lek down the ramp, partially dragging Xor as the man stumbled blindly, a loud wheezing coming from his tortured form.

"This was a slaver. One who thought he could control what was stronger than him."

Revan's armored form seemed to materialize beside Xor, his arms crossing as he regarded the slaver with a blank stare from a faceless mask. The Dark Lord's voice was empty of emotion and caused all of the Sith present to stand straighter, their bodies stilling as certainty of who Revan was fell over them.  
"This is the fate of all those who defy me. Pain without end."  
Xor had since collapsed to his knees, his voice a broken and hoarse so as he begged for mercy from the other Sith and offered them anything they wanted. He was quickly silenced by a backhand from Aven's fist.

"This is a... man... and I use that term loosely; who thought he could put a price on life and used pain and fear as tools to control those too young to fight back."  
Revan was staring directly at Yuthura Ban, catching stray thoughts from the former slave and one in particular made the Dark Lord smirk beneath his mask.

"Yuthura Ban. You saw a Cathar earlier today?"  
The Sith Instructor jerked in surprise at being directly addressed but nodded her head calmly when she recovered. Revan tilted his head to the side, his mask hiding his eyes and expression and Yuthura tensed and could not hide the tremor that ran through her body.

"Arrest the Dark Jedi and the Mercenary you met in the cantina and bring their... _slave_ to me. Her name is Juhani and I made her a promise I intend to keep."  
Yuthura bowed and motioned to several of the Dark Jedi standing as honor guards to follow her while Uthar and Saul glanced at one another with matching frowns.

"Saul. The two prisoners Yuthura is recovering are Jedi and Republic spies, sent to disrupt the sovereignty of the Sith Empire. Kaera Nurr and... Carth Onasi. Make certain they are... kept alive but out of my way."  
Saul frowned at the thought of Carth Onasi being on the same planet as him and bowed to Revan before he turned to Uthar.

"I left a boy in your care several years ago. Make sure he doesn't know of Onasi."  
Saul ordered, much to Uthar's annoyance. The Sith Master of the Academy scowled and opened his mouth to protest taking orders from Karath before he caught the dark look Aven Sek'tai sent him. Nodding submissively to Karath, Uthar straightened his uniform and waited for more orders. Revan's crossed arms dropped to his sides and clenched into fists.

"This isn't a bloody parade, Uthar. Get back to the Academy and keep training the weakling students who think they'll make Sith Master in this age."

The Dark Jedi that had remained when Yuthura went to apprehend Carth and Kaera exchanged looked of annoyance mixed with speculation and understanding. The methods of Uthar's Academy were wasteful and too competitive to bring about the results needed to provide more Dark Jedi for the Sith Empire. They all knew they weren't as strong as most of the Dark Jedi serving the Empire, but to be openly mocked by Revan, openly acknowledged as weak was an embarrassment.

"No longer limit their potential for your own amusement, Uthar. We are preparing for a war, not catering to your sadism."  
Revan spat, his voice filled with disdain. Uthar froze and turned to Revan, glaring openly at the Dark Lord. Revan did not back down from the glare and pulled a lightsaber from his belt, tossing it with impressive accuracy into the Instructor's chest. Uthar Wynn dropped to the ground, lifeless and the same look of hatred burned on his face. He hadn't even had time to react.

"I suppose Yuthura is getting a promotion."  
Revan mused, causing several of the Dark Jedi to laugh before they covered it up with coughs and shifted their stances. Revan made no comment as he retrieved his weapon, crossing his arms as he waited for Yuthura to return with Carth, Kaera and Juhani.


	33. Chapter 32: Outgunned

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"When Kaera sent the distress signal, we invaded Sith-held space around Korriban; expecting minimal resistance. What we found... was something we all prayed was gone forever."_

_~Admiral Forn Dodonna shortly after the Republic defeat over Korriban~_

Chapter 32: Outgunned

The Force shifted slightly, echoing a warning. It was subtle, almost like a low buzzing of an insect in one's ear but it was all Kaera Nurr needed. Flipping a switch in the transport, the Jedi Knight activated the distress signal that would have a small Republic task force in orbit around Korriban instantly. Saul Karath had around ten ships with crews of three thousand in orbit before and the Republic task force was five times that size, numbering at around fifty ships. They were small fleets considering the scale of the war, but then again a full Republic fleet ran anywhere between a thousand and ten thousand ships. With each ship holding crews of close to a thousand soldiers and crewmen, it suited what was needed to subdue a small sector of the galaxy. The much smaller task force supporting Kaera was one of necessity. The Republic was having more and more trouble marshaling the gargantuan fleets it had been able to field at the beginning of the Jedi Civil war and during the Mandalorian war.

Fifty thousand highly trained veteran soldiers and crewmen were enough for taking on thirty thousand Sith. The Sith capitol ships were larger and stronger, but the numbers worked in the Republic's favor for once and Republic ships had always been faster than the Sith's. Well, aside from the fighters. Sith fighters were a nightmare to track and shoot down due to their speed and maneuverability and the task was mainly left to the automatic point defenses on the Republic ships and droid controllers. The average sentient's eye had trouble tracking the agile and swift fighters when they were swarming a Republic ship like Corellian hornets.

A high pitched whine alerted Kaera to the collapsing stealth field and she turned, lightsaber in hand as the violet beam intercepted the arm reaching for her. The Dark Jedi screamed in pain, staggering back as his arm dropped to the ground and Kaera glared at the man, debating killing him before a loud curse from Carth drew her attention to him. Yuthura had her lightsaber against Carth's throat, held in a way that would insure he died slowly if she activated the weapon. It would have been a mortal wound either way.

"Stand down or he dies."  
Yuthura said calmly, completely focused on Kaera Nurr. The Jedi Knight turned her attention to the injured Sith before her, debating using him as a hostage before Juhani entered, unarmed as Kaera had insisted she remain while on the mission. The Cathar looked worried and turned her attention to the wounded Dark Jedi, hesitantly raising her arm as if she wished to help before she lowered it and stood back. One of the other Dark Jedi came to her side, his blade inactive but in hand to convey a warning and Juhani tensed as his hands passed over her briefly, checking for weapons. The hands didn't linger, but Juhani still felt violated by them and shuddered as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"She's clear."  
The Dark Jedi stated calmly, his eyes narrowing as he stared hard at Juhani, but said nothing. Yuthura nodded to the Sith and made a hand gesture to the man to secure the Cathar. Gently, especially for a Sith, the Dark Jedi rested his hand on Juhani's forearm and gave a small tug, pulling the Cathar with him.

"I thought you were dead. When I heard about Dantooine-"  
Juhani's body tensed as the Sith spoke to her, his voice quiet, though familiar and warm and she turned in surprise, taking in the man's brown eyes and the dark skin visible around his mask and hood.

"Vesser get her out of here!"  
Yuthura snapped, her violet eyes glaring at the human. The only reason Dak Vesser was there with them was due to his training as a Padawan in the Jedi Order and not any particular talent. He was knowledgeable but not skilled and it was a source of frustration on both their parts in regards to his training. He knew enough to be useful, but not enough to have any real potential.

"Of course, Ma'am."  
Dak spoke respectfully, inclining his head as he led an unresisting Juhani from the transport. The Cathar stared at the man in a mixture of shock, relief and pain. She was glad that he was alive and surprised to see him but it pained her that he was a Sith. She had seen the depths of darkness within Revan's eyes on Dantooine and later on Tatooine and Manaan and she did not want that for herself or... her friends. Dak had been a friend on Dantooine, even though he had wanted to be more she had turned him down and he had left. They both had trouble with their emotions and passion, but Juhani had wanted at the time to be a Jedi. Now though, she only wanted to be someone her parents would have been proud of and when she thought of what the Jedi had done to Revan in the name of the greater good and what Revan was capable of, she saw that the path of a Jedi and a Sith were not the answers.

Yuthura ignored Dak's break of protocol as he led Juhani from the transport. She had been interested in Juhani's potential as a student and the Cathar had responded to Dak as one would to a familiar face that had changed greatly since last seen. She knew her own family, if they had survived slavery on Sleheyron would look at her the same way. As she restrained Carth, Yuthura mentally debating the pros and cons of using Dak to get to Juhani. The Cathar's Force-presence was respectable and the way she moved showed that Juhani could use a lightsaber competently.

At the bottom of the ramp, Dak motioned to the four silver-armored Sith guards waiting outside. It had been a stealth operation since Revan wanted Juhani alive and implied that Carth and Kaera knew something and the Sith soldiers entered with stun batons, blaster pistols set to stun and binders. The Dark Jedi could disable the Jedi and Republic soldier easier than they could, but they were prepared to act if needed. Upon entering the transport, the lead Sith trooper jabbed Carth with his stun baton as Yuthura fluidly released Carth and stepped in front of him, activating her lightsaber and letting the blade bathe her pale violet skin in its crimson glow. Carth all but collapsed as he took the stun-stick to his head and he fumbled uselessly when Yuthura released her hold on him, binders clicking over his wrists and a second shock from the stunner leaving him a drooling, unconscious mass of forty-something Republic Commander.  
Kaera knew she was outnumbered and outclassed if the easy movements of Yuthura Ban were any indication, but she kept her hold on her weapon, gritting her teeth as she resolved to fight. A shadow moved through the ship, materializing into a fully-armored and recovered Darth Revan and Kaera's weapon faltered slightly. She knew Revan could kill her. He could _casually_ kill her and write her off without a second glance and she wondered why he would bother capturing her if she held no real importance to him. She had wanted to be friends with the man who she believed he was before knowledge of his true identity was revealed and she had wanted to believe he could be better before she had seen the depths of his darkness. Now, she only wanted to survive him and fight off all those who would follow his dark teachings.

"You sent a signal to a Republic Task Force, am I correct?"  
Revan's tone was emotionless, though it held the barest hint of expectation. Kaera's features hardened, her blue eyes shining like Manaan's oceans when the system's star hit them mid-day and she stared at Revan, expressionless. Her injuries from their brief encounter on Manaan ached even though they were healed and she felt her heart all but stop at the sensation of his aura. It was a cold and empty thing. Bottomless and void of the emotions and stirring of the Force and only the smallest hint of concern, tainted by the Darkness that had ruled Revan's life was there and a flash of Bastila's gray eyes was the only hint Kaera received before she let out a wordless cry and rushed Revan.

"Pointless."  
Revan muttered, flicking his wrist and throwing Kaera back with his superior power. An invisible wall literally knocked the breath out of Kaera as she was flung back like a rag doll into the bulkhead of the transport. The Jedi felt her consciousness slipping, but screamed in agony as blue-white lightning snaked over her body, pulling her back to full awareness.

"Rescind the signal or a lot of your friends will die."  
Kaera tasted blood in her mouth where her teeth had clamped down on her tongue as her jaw had locked during the brief encounter with Revan's Force-lightning attack. She dazedly took in the blank expressions of the Sith around her and feebly reached for her lightsaber when it was pulled from her hands by an invisible grasp.

"N-never."  
Kaera stated boldly, her body suddenly lifting as invisible hands lifted her into the air. Suspended by Revan's powers, Kaera could do nothing as she was restrained by the two silver-armored Sith that had remained when the others took Carth away.

"Then they are all going to die."  
Revan stated simply before he turned on his heels and left. Pausing by Yuthura, Revan turned his masked features to the Twi'lek Instructor and gave a nod of approval at her handling of the situation before he had stepped in. His presence was unnecessary but he had felt compelled to explore Kaera Nurr's uses. They were few and he wrote her off in the same category as Carth Onasi in that moment.

"You are now the Master of the Academy, Yuthura. Have Commander Onasi and Knight Nurr delivered to Saul Karath. He needs some incentive to stay loyal and handing over an old enemy and a means of harming said enemy will work in our favor."

Yuthura saw the logic in Revan's statement, though she had no idea the origin and nodded stiffly before catching herself and bowing deeply to the Dark Lord of the Sith.

"Of course, Milord. It will be done."  
Revan tilted his masked features briefly before turning to give Kaera one last look and vanished out of the transport.

"Have Commander Onasi returned to the ship and prepare it for immediate departure for the _Leviathan._"

The soldiers restraining an injured and dazed Kaera saluted and made the necessary preparations after briefly fighting with the locked computer of the transport. Yuthura cast a look at Kaera, seeing the defiance in the Jedi's eyes and respecting it briefly before common sense took over and she saw how foolish it was to defy Revan. Revan was power, he always had been. He had literally walked into the heart of the Mandalorian's war effort nearly half a decade before and had slain not only Mandalore the Ultimate, but nearly every warrior and officer and droid on his ship. Revan had returned from apparent death and there was no doubt in Yuthura Ban's mind that Revan was meant for greatness and that his greatness had not yet been achieved. Even if he had been Supreme Commander of the Republic Fleet and even if he had been a self-made Emperor and warlord of the Sith, Revan was the kind of man who had a destiny and Yuthura vowed to do her part, lest she be buried beneath the debris Darth Revan would leave in his wake.  
Carth was dragged past Revan and back into the transport while Juhani stood off to the side, watching the spectacle with a frown. She had yet to mention the fourth member of their crew and as a voluntary neutral party she wasn't planning to. Jolee Bindo had been a defender of her actions and had become a friend to her in the ensuing weeks since Manaan. She wouldn't betray him and she hoped he succeeded in evading the Sith and freeing Carth and Kaera. Revan had paused briefly to offer the Cathar a wave that held no meaning to her for a moment. The quick motion of Revan's hand was a command, not a greeting and Dak quickly took notice, taking Juhani's forearm and leading her after Revan when the Dark Lord began walking back to where Saul Karath was calmly ordering around two soldiers with a stretcher as they loaded Uthar Wynn's body for disposal.  
Juhani stared at the corpse before she caught sight of a red and black figure standing over a violet mass. The Cathar gasped in shock at the appearance of Xor and ignored Aven Sek'tai as the Twi'lek tensed at her approach. Juhani looked down in a mixture of shock, disgust and anger at Xor before she turned to Revan and silently stared at him, unable to form words as her body shook. Dak, seeing Juhani's distress made a move to comfort her before he was backhanded by Revan.

"She is not weak!"  
Revan all but snarled to the Dark Jedi as he reeled and dropped to the ground from the force of the blow. Revan glowered down at Dak for a moment before he casually tossed Kaera Nurr's lightsaber to Juhani. With reflexes honed by nearly a decade of Jedi training, the lightsaber found Juhani's weapon hand and she stared at the hilt with a troubled look, her eyes turning first to Dak and then to Revan.

"I promised you would decide his fate when we encountered him on Manaan. If you do not wish to stain your hands with his blood you are free to do as you will. I will not abide him to life through the night though, Juhani. Kill your own monster or let HK finish what he started."  
Juhani turned to see the rust-colored assassin droid perk up at the thought of violence and shivered as she looked down to Xor's beaten form. The man was a mass of bruises and small burns and his face was so swollen he couldn't see from his eyes. Blood leaked from his ears and he shivered constantly, jerking in spasmodic motions at seemingly random intervals.

The Twi'lek slaver had murdered her mother violently and caused her father's death and then he had taken to abusing her physically and mentally for months. It had been a nightmare the first time he'd touched her and one she still had to that day. She would later reflect that there was something therapeutic about watching the object of your nightmares brought to a level of helplessness she had once been forced into and she stared at Xor with enraged yellow eyes, the humming of Kaera's lightsaber not even reaching her ears. A snarl took over her face as she forced the violet blade into Xor's abdomen and she watched through impassive eyes as he feebly struggled against the pain, moaning helplessly at the mortal wound. Flicking off the blade, Juhani attached it to her belt and turned to Revan's raised head. The man obviously found the act interesting and Juhani did not even bother to meet the slit in Revan's mask with her eyes before she walked towards Yuthura Ban without a word and asked to be trained. She would seek out the Starmap in the Tomb of Naga Sadow and find a way to redeem herself for her actions but she would never, could never be a Jedi. She just could not let go of what Xor had done to her and her family and she couldn't even feel shame at killing the bastard.

Revan crossed his arms for a moment before he turned to look down at Xor's slowly dying form. He felt nothing as a result of his brain damage and the Jedi's interference, but a sense of satisfaction flickered on the edge of his thoughts, strengthening briefly when Bastila peeked curiously into the bond she shared with Revan. The turned Padawan and apprentice to Darth Malak remained on Rakata Prime, awaiting Revan's arrival and preparing herself physically and mentally for their reunion. She wanted to fight him and show him what she was capable of, show him that she was strong and not broken by Malak's tortures but also show him that she still... Bastila frowned as she tried to put a word on her feelings for Revan. Love would be the most obvious choice, but it felt different from what she associated with love. Revan was too complex an individual for her to decide suddenly that she loved him from the brief glimpses she had seen in his mind but she respected him greatly for his strengths and his actions of the past. She admired how he handled her father's remains and her mother and she was quite thoroughly enthralled by his powers and prowess in battle.

Some might have called it love, but she wasn't quite sure what love was. It wasn't love in a romantic sense, though she was appreciative of Revan physically. The bond she shared with the deposed Sith Lord was a factor in her feelings towards Revan and Bastila wondered briefly how much it affected her views of the man. She knew his nightmares as if they were her own, felt the feelings he did as she did her own and she remembered his firm touch as he guided her through complex katas that Jedi Knights and Masters still practiced. Revan was larger than life and seemed more a prize than anything else and she did not want a prize so much as the man. He was not a fixture of her obsessions and perceived inadequacies. He was part of her soul, part of her that she could not give up. Part of her that Malak couldn't break and she resolved to show Revan what she had become in his absence and she hoped, as foolish as it was, that he would accept her. She wasn't some frail and spoiled Jedi Princess in need of rescuing. She was a Sith Apprentice and powerful in her own right.

The constant belittlement of the Jedi Masters seemed distant in her mind and she saw only the look in Revan's brown eyes as he watched her. The measuring gaze as he watched her duel and train, the respect when she did not take what was told to her at face value and the hint of... compassion that had been in his eyes when he'd accompanied her to see her mother on Tatooine. Revan was not a simple man and despite the coldness she sensed in the bond from him, she knew he was more. He was so very much more.

Revan closed his eyes as he felt Bastila across half the galaxy, gently and curiously probing his thoughts and emotions. There was a hint of distress from the captured Padawan but acceptance and resolve and Revan opened his eyes slowly, a smirk that had adorned his face from time to time during his travels with Bastila and the others stretching across his lips. It was a very Mandalorian smirk and Revan was glad for his mask as it kept others from questioning the gesture, aloud or in their own minds. They were beneath his notice at that moment and the distraction of analyzing his facial expressions was a waste of time. Revan was simply proud of what he could sense of Bastila and was practically jumping in anticipation of what he would behold when they were finally reunited and their thoughts once again touched. Bastila had grown in the time since she had been taken and Revan wanted to see how far she'd come.

If she was a danger to him he would deal with it, but he entertained the thought of having her at his side as a willing and loyal accomplice. He wouldn't necessarily call her an apprentice as he wanted an equal to stand at his side but he knew there were still things Bastila needed to learn about the Force. Despite the specifics of the matter, Revan knew Bastila would be glorious when she finally grew into her potential and he walked on silently, allowing his thoughts to drift for a moment before the responsibilities of his position caught up with him and he boarded the transport that would return HK, Aven and himself to the _Reclaimer._ A Republic Task Force was on its way to Korriban and Revan allowed a cold smile to cross his lips as he thought of the _surprise_ they would find. They expected Saul Karath's paltry ten ships, not the combined might of two hundred Revanchist Sith vessels with crews that held absolute loyalty to him.

Given time, Revan planned to undermine the Sith supporting Malak and turn on the Star Forge. Bastila could wait as she would likely side with him in the end and Revan knew Malak. Malak would hide behind numbers on the Star Forge when he realized his Empire was falling apart and he would strike out from there once he had enough ships. The majority of the Sith Fleet was in the Rakatan system, safe behind the planetary disruptor field that had protected the Star Forge for millennia and Revan debated using the spy networks within the Revanchist Sith ranks to get a message to Bastila.

Malak would probably hide on the Star Forge itself and leave Bastila within reach, but far enough away that she could not stab him in the back directly. The Temple of the Ancients on Rakata Prime was her likely location and Revan huffed in mild humor at how simple it would be to overcome Malak and preserve the Sith fleet. The computer buried in the depths of the Temple that controlled the planetary disruptor field not only controlled whether it was on or off, but also the frequency it broadcast and it would be a simple and devastating thing to cripple the Sith fleet and anyone who chose to interfere with a bit of planning, stealth and computer slicing.

Jolee Bindo silently let out a relieved sigh as he deactivated his stealth field generator. Years of hiding his presence in the Force had made him all but invisible to the Sith, even one of Revan's power and Juhani had not betrayed him to the Sith. Something Jolee had expected of the young Cathar once he took the time to get to know her. They had a similar outlook on the Force, favoring the gray side and not the light and dark and Jolee had silently respected Juhani's courage to do what she felt was right and not what the Council dictated to her. She had only accompanied Carth and Kaera on their suicidal mission to safeguard Revan's life and hopefully his treatment if he was recaptured and Jolee had gone along out of simple boredom. Nomi was beside herself with grief but her grandson by Vima kept her busy on Coruscant after the necessity of her presence on Manaan had no longer been... necessary. Jolee had wanted to make a difference and chose to leave Nomi to her grief. There was little in the bounds of Jedi doctrine that he could do for her and he knew Nomi was just too much of a Jedi to accept anything more between them as a possibility. She had been adamant to adhere to the edicts of the Order after Exar Kun's defeat and was a driving force behind the changing of the Jedi Code and the banning of emotional attachments.

Having been forced to fight his own wife in the war, Jolee saw the wisdom in such a thing, but he also saw the stupidity. The lack of outlets for the younger Jedi's passions would lead to violent outbursts that would simply grow more potent over time the longer they were suppressed and not accepted. It was one of the reasons he had left the Jedi Order. It had become an organization that was gripped by fear and had changed its Code to entail suppressing emotions and not simply accepting and dealing with them. If the old Masters could see what had become of the Order, Jolee was certain they would be rolling in their funeral pyres.

Scowling as he crept from the empty transport and into the hangar of the _Leviathan, _Jolee reached out carefully with his senses, avoiding the patrols as he could and trying to keep his presence invisible to the sensors and cameras present on the Sith Interdictor. He had to use every trick he'd learned as a smuggler, every lesson he'd absorbed as a Jedi Padawan and the knowledge of every experience living in the Shadowlands for two decades had given him to break out Carth and Kaera. Failure wasn't an option and Jolee silently hoped he got to them before they were too far gone. He'd heard about some of the things Sith did to prisoners and the old man fought to keep from rushing himself. Patience was important when one was infiltrating a ship's prison block and he wasn't going to be stupid and rush in like a hero or a kid. He was too old for it anyways. Better to be slow, quiet and stealthy.

AN: Reposted this chapter due to the typos. Sorry about that, was half asleep when I wrote/posted it last night.


	34. Chapter 33: Edge of the Blade

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"We all have our burdens to bear. If you let your thoughts linger on those burdens... if you let them rule your life you invite them to take hold of you and pull you down into a deep and cold ocean of despair. It will crush you under its pressure, fill your lungs and body and mind and blind you with burning agony and consume you. Do not be troubled by petty morality. It has no place in my war."_

_~Darth Revan to Admiral Forn Dodonna via communicator during the Battle of Korriban~_

Chapter 33: Edge of the Blade

_"Harden your heart to your enemies. Strike them down without pity or remorse or anger. Hate is a wasted emotion and has no place in a Mandalorian's heart. Become as unyielding as stone, as tempered as the blade in your hand and you will be a warrior."_

The voice of his mother before her death echoed in Revan Qel-Droma's mind as he stared at his black leather gloves. The Sith Lord absently rubbed his index finger and his thumb of his right hand together as his left clenched into a fist. Small, intricate circles wore at the pristine surface of the leather, making its smooth surface rough. The voices of bridge officers passed over Revan's thoughts, barely catching at the last moment as he mindlessly gave orders. A gravity shift in the Interdictor that headed the Revanchist Sith's flagship _Reclaimer_ barely registered to Revan and the war-hardened crew as the ship banked sharply, producing its side as it shuddered from the impact of enemy fire. The Republic fleet was outnumbered over four to one, but they still put up a fight and Revan allowed his loyal followers to fight against the Republic ships while Saul Karath and his ten ships hung in the back over Korriban, their gray hulls gleaming as the star of the Korriban system struck them.

"Track the signal we just beamed to their fleet. See which one of their ships is getting the most attention."  
Revan ordered, staring at the fleet of nondescript Republic cruisers with absent interest. The flagship of the fleet would be carrying the detachment's commander and unless the Republic fleet was running on a communications blackout, the flagship would be relaying the most signals. Three Republic ships appeared in a pulsating red pattern on the bridge's holographic display and Revan eyed the disposition of the fleet before pointing at the outermost vessel. Republic Fleet Commanders had a habit of sending in their comrades to the opposing ships while they _surveyed_ the battlefield from a _tactical_ distance. It was all just an exercise in cowardice and Revan's lip curled in disgust as he crossed his arms, still rubbing his thumb and index finger on his right hand together. The hand trembled slightly before it stilled a moment later and Revan remained oblivious to the compulsion as his shuddering flagship lined up an attack run with the outermost Republic vessel.  
"Pointless."  
Revan muttered to himself, mirroring the words he had said to Kaera Nurr hours before on Korriban when she had attacked him. It was futile to resist the change sweeping the galaxy and to resist such a wide-swept phenomenon was simply against the laws of nature... the will of the Force and Revan rode along the tidal wave of the Force, manipulating its inevitability to suit him. A Jedi Master would say the Force was with Revan; but that was not true. Revan was simply taking advantage of a shift in the Force, allowing the subtle ministrations of the all-encompassing energy field to empower and place favor on those who chose to fight alongside him.

The Republic ship targeted did as expected and turned tail. Only the Interdictor's gravity well generators kept the Republic craft from escaping into hyperspace and Revan's sneer curved into a smirk before it fell away to an empty and cold expression.

Small victories meant nothing in the face of a galaxy-spanning war for survival.

Republic Admiral Forn Dodonna flinched when her flagship was obliterated by a hail of turboblaster fire from a ship that showed up on her sensors as the _Reclaimer_. The strangely-colored Interdictor was appropriately named as it had headed the _Revanchist_ fleet's efforts with unreasonable success. Twelve Republic vessels, including the most powerful and heavily shielded had fallen in an hour. Their fighters had all been expended against the swarms of Sith Fighters and the viewport was mottled with gray, black and red against the backdrop of Korriban. The Republic Admiral had been making an inspection on the _Sojourn_ before Kaera Nurr's distress signal had been received and they'd immediately jumped to the edge of the Korriban system, cruising into the heart of the Sith's training grounds and expecting an easy fight. Finding over twenty times the amount of ships they'd expected had dampened their spirits and they'd immediately sent out a request for reinforcements. The request was subsequently denied.

Dodonna's fleet was operating at a small fraction of its normal strength due to preparations for an assault against Darth Malak's stronghold. They were simply assisting in the requisition of the location in case of unforseen complications before rejoining the rest of their ships. Operating at half of a percent of their fleet's normal numbers, the Republic forces were hopelessly outnumbered and far from any real aid. Korriban was on the edge of what had been Mandalorian space and one of the far reaches of the Republic's Outer Rim. The closest Republic worlds were smoldering balls of glass that had long ago fallen before the massive armadas of Darth Revan and Darth Malak. The bodies of billions littered what had been Republic space in the general vicinity of Korriban and any sustained presence was not only pointless, but a waste of resources. There was no one near Korriban left to protect and nothing there that could be lost again.

The Jedi had brought a sliver of hope to a Republic on the verge of collapse. Despite the fact that many of those fighting the Republic had once been students of the Jedi Order, the Republic had the utmost respect and faith in the Jedi. Mainly due to the efforts of the Revanchist faction during the Mandalorian Wars. The Jedi Order had taken a backseat to the previous war, but it was not uncommon to see a Jedi Knight or a Jedi Master in the middle of a battle between Sith and Republic soldiers and the near-legend status that had fallen to the Jedi that had followed Revan years before transferred to the Jedi Knights that had refused to stand against Mandalore's armies and fleets.

That was why the diminutive form of Jedi Master Vandar Tokare was standing beside Dodonna, staring forlornly at the Revanchist flagship. Revan had issued an ultimatum at the beginning of the battle, his emotionless voice chilling the Republic soldiers and the Jedi Master to their very core. It had not been a demand for their surrender or a pointed threat to the same end. It had simply been a request from a Dark Lord thought gone from the war. A request that many Republic soldiers remembered Mandalorians making before entering into battle against them. However unnerving the only communication from the Revanchist Sith fleet had been, the message was clear. Revan wanted a fight. A brutal, no quarters given battle to the bitter end, fight.

Gravity well generators had switched on and the hyperspace computers of the Republic ships had protested in warning, flashing red lights giving way to the distant red-orange explosions that marked the deaths of fighter pilots from both sides. Soon, capitol ships began falling to the relentless assault and Dodonna crossed her arms as anger, fear and resignation took hold of her. Twenty of their fifty ships were lost and only three of the Revanchist ships seemed to have been damaged. The sheer armament and shielding of the advanced Sith Interdictors was overwhelming and with the numbers so heavily turned against them, Dodonna reluctantly ordered a retreat.

The Republic ships were faster and when they began to run, Revan passed along the order for the fleet to hold. It could be a feign for a larger fleet to strike Korriban. There had been a Jedi presence within the small Republic task force but the Jedi had failed to influence the battle's inevitable conclusion and Revan's brown eyes narrowed as he studied the Ion engines of the fleeing Republic vessels. The Force was with him, but he had learned long ago to not place his trust in the Force and the Sith Lord crossed his arms, his hands trembling again as he considered the wisdom of pursuit. Such a small Republic fleet, especially one that had lost two-fifths of their numbers posed next to no threat in the grand scheme of things and it would be a waste of resources and time to hunt down so few. The risk of losing Korriban was one that his followers could withstand, but it would make Malak nervous to lose the world. Especially due to its significance to the origins of the Sith. It would bring into question Malak's power and Revan knew Malak would react violently.

Violence on Malak's part against his own followers would sew the seeds of dissent within the ranks of the Sith still loyal to his former apprentice and Revan considered his next option. Another Sith world would need to fall. Korriban was so far from the Rakatan system that Malak's response would be a long time coming. A closer target was needed.

Unnoticed, Revan's gloved index finger brushed a small worn path against his thumb.

Mission Vao sat on the edge of her bed, her knees pulled up to her chest as she awaited the conclusion of the battle around her. The Twi'lek shivered when she thought of the deaths she was responsible for due to her helping Revan escape Dantooine and she sniffed quietly, wiping a hand over her eyes as she tried to push past the pain. She had been trying to help a friend on Dantooine. Revan had saved her and Big Z and she had felt compelled to help him. Canderous was so blinded by awe of who Revan was that Mission had no doubts as to what the man would do if Revan ordered it. Burying her head into her knees, Mission unconsciously projected her emotions outward, the nearly nonexistent presence she held in the Force filling with her strong, guilt-ridden emotions.

No one really realized it at that point, but the Twi'lek girl had uncovered one of Revan Qel-Droma's greatest weaknesses.

Darth Revan stalked through the corridors of his flagship with clenched hands, the trembling unwavering as emotions too strong for him to block and ignore assailed him. His connection to the Force had always been strong and he'd developed an empathy for living beings during his training as a Jedi. It was part of the reason he'd gone to war. The deaths he had felt, the pain and agony of millions dying at once in nuclear fire on Serroco was only one step of many in his slow descent into a mental breakdown.

Malachor V had driven him insane and the True Sith's lingering threat had catered to a monster born of war and pain and the endless pit of rage that the billions of dead left in the wake of the Mandalorian wars created. Long after their deaths the final moments of their lives, the violent and painful ends echoed through the Force for any strong enough to hear the whispers.

The voices had been so numerous that Revan had simply grown cold. He'd fallen back on training borne of his Mandalorian heritage and it was only a natural process when he took the next step and took up his father's title of Sith Lord. The problem was, Revan had the conscious ability to block out the emotions before. Bastila's powerful and driven emotions acted as a buffer for Revan's thoughts and he'd taken solace in the bond he shared with the fallen Padawan. When she had gone, his mind had been numb to the trauma of the separation and he had felt nothing. Cold and unquestionable logic had fueled him for weeks after as his mind healed itself but a pattern had begun to emerge of recent.  
Revan unconsciously formed small mental links to those he deemed important. It had occurred during the Mandalorian war and even before that when he had formed a training and friendship bond with Alec. Alec had gone on to become Darth Malak and that bond had shifted to accommodate the change, falling into the realm of a Master/student bond that retained some of the easy camaraderie that he and Alec had developed while working together during their Jedi training and the Mandalorian war.

Revan had made such a bond with Mission and the means to block the Twi'lek's powerful emotions eluded him when the Force shifted and abandoned its favor of him. Unbalanced and slightly unhinged by the invasion of the Twi'lek teenager's thoughts, Revan's hands began to tremble at the girl's guilt at helping him and long-ignored memories resurfaced and left a foul taste in Revan's mouth. Turning his brown eyes to his gloves, Revan clenched his hands, the leather straining against the movement and creaking in protest.

He wore gloves to the point of obsession. It had been a compulsion of Revan's that few understood. If he were honest, only Revan's former Jedi Master Kreia had any understanding of the compulsion of Revan to obscure his face and cover his hands. A memory from childhood of his first kill was the source and while it _should _have been a moment of pride for Revan as a Mandalorian, it had been an accidental and horrific thing. After Kreia had discovered him, the Jedi part of him that had surfaced during his apprenticeship drove him to his trademark mask and leather gloves. The excuse of protecting his hands and shielding his features from potential harm had been his initial reasoning but Kreia had seen how Revan's eyes would not focus on his face when he stared in the mirror. The boy was constantly washing his hands after any given task and was _twitchy_ when not learning a technique or practicing his forms.

The compulsion had driven Revan Qel-Droma to study the Jedi arts and his focus on the aspects of Jedi training made him a rising star within the Order. Kreia had been proud of that, until she'd discovered the source of Revan's drive.

He had first killed a sentient being at the age of six. When most sentients were learning to read and write, Revan was training to kill. When most children in the Republic played inane games and chattered about their dreams, Revan was conditioned to withstand pain and drilled on the importance of strength and honor.

His first kill had been a fellow Mandalorian during a training accident. They'd been training with blades in a small Mandalorian encampment on Deralia and Revan had used a new stance he had learned to show his comrade how to adapt. Barely four, the other Mandalorian child had not reacted as one of Revan's age would to an opponent's shifting style and had been skewered. It had been an accidental strike and therefore a sloppy one and the little girl had taken some time to die. The other Mandalorians had done nothing to help when Revan had carried the body back to the encampment. Accidents happened and none of the warriors cast blame on the boy, not even his own mother. It was accepted and ignored as an inevitability of their harsh life but Revan had neither accepted nor ignored the event.

Staring down at his gloves, Revan envisioned his hands beneath them. Stained a bright, unnatural red that was always there. He had _felt_ the blade pierce that girl, suffered alongside her as she slowly died from the untrained strike and he'd been so overcome by the pain he was feeling within the Force, the echoes of the child's death that he was no help to her. His hands had been stained with the blood of family, of a fellow warrior and Revan had wondered of his mother. She'd always been distant, but after that point she was absent and the Mandalorian-raised Sith Lord diverted his path to his quarters and shed his gloves, running his hands under a cascade of water and staring through blank brown eyes at the glaring _red_ that stained his hands. It was ridiculous really, completely without logic. He'd been responsible for the deaths of hundreds of billions and had murdered and killed and tortured thousands... likely tens of thousands with his own hands but he had never let the blood touch his skin since that first kill. He had taken meticulous steps to make certain no blood touched his hands but there it was, caked in slowly drying layers on his hands.

Rubbing his thumb and index finger together in a small circle, Revan looked up into the mirror of his fresher, staring at the mask marred with the blood on his hands. It was a fitting mask, one that hid the monster beneath it with a much more bearable facade. However unintentional his first kill had been, it had marked him for the rest of his life and had been one of the reasons he had been so taken by Juhani's plight on Taris. The small body laying on the ground, curled upon itself in a fetal position had haunted him for a decade and a half when he had met Juhani and he could never stand violence against a child.

Killing them from a starship in orbit was one thing, but to be on the ground, standing over their bodies was something entirely different. It was a double standard and he had murdered plenty of children since then; but the deaths had not been so direct. They had not been so tangible when he had been a Dark Lord of the Sith and had been so numbed by the Mandalorian war and his encounter with the True Sith and as close to insanity as he would ever admit to. It had been a simple itch at the back of his mind then, but the blood of the first child he had killed had been joined by others during the wars and the loss of the brightness that was a child's presence in the Force always ripped at whatever part of Revan had once been a good man.

While Mission Vao was still alive, the change in her aura, in her presence within the Force was so visceral to Revan that he was assaulted with unwelcome but very necessary memories. Her guilt was changing her, shredding her very soul and it was pounding against the weak bond Revan shared with the young Twi'lek with all the grace of a drunken Bantha. It was a welcomed pain that assaulted the Dark Lord, though. Memories make the man after all.

Jolee Bindo stretched with a silent groan, the air leaving his lungs in a slow sigh as he crouched into a service duct, his eyes flicking to the wrist-monitor for his stealth field generator as it recharged its drained power supply. The indicator flashed red to red-orange, steadily climbing to a yellow tint before settling to a bright green. Giving the device a few extra moments to settle its internal dispute, Jolee rolled his eyes at his predicament and grumbled under his breath about being too old as he reactivated his stealth field, allowing the distortion of light to shield his body and the traces of his presence while the Force shifted subtly at his will, obscuring him from prying eyes.

Silent and measured steps ghosted the deck of the _Leviathan_ as the aging former Padawan kept a constant vigil for any hint of being discovered. He was good, beyond good at what he was doing, but at the same time he was out of practice and in his own opinion; too old to sneak around like some youngster on a mission. He wasn't a Jedi and wasn't so in tuned with the Force that it helped his body withstand the test of time. Some Jedi were simply so connected with the Force that their bodies stopped aging and they lived until they were killed or simply lost sight of the Force. It was rare, but not unheard of but Jolee was not one of them. Aches from a harsh life of exile on Kashyyyk protested and the old man's knees were stiff with discomfort and the passage of time. Muscles were well-maintained but weaker than they'd been years before and each step was painful.

_"Keep your focus you old bag. Those kids need you."  
_Grunting as his stealth field collapsed and the wrist-monitor flashed an angry red, Jolee slid down to the floor, rubbing his knees and breathing in and out slowly, trying to calm himself. His heart wasn't as strong as it had been twenty years ago and his senses, while greatly focused due to the Force and his lifestyle; were also failing him as the chaos of the space battle outside the _Leviathan's_ hull continued. Echoes fell along the path of Jolee's senses, blocking his thoughts with pain and death and he flinched as he shifted to stand, his back protesting an old injury and letting him know just how much disservice Jolee was giving it. The cold of space sent a chill to the old Jedi's Bones and while Kashyyyk's Shadowlands had been cool from time to time, the emptiness of space seemed to add subconsciously to the discomfort.

The aches of aging played against Jolee's abilities and senses and he nearly missed the Sith soldier walking down the corridor towards him, barely catching himself as he dodged deftly past the soldier.

Junior Officer First Class, Sarna paused as she moved from her duty station to her quarters, her brown eyes flickering over her shoulder as she stared at a distortion in the air. Blinking, the Sith soldier turned, her hand going for her weapon as she stared at the distortion before she saw it was only a vent and her armor's sensors read a simple heat increase in the vicinity. Turning around, the soldier continued on her previous route, pulling off her helmet with a sigh as she rubbed her weary eyes. She'd been assigned to the _Leviathan_ after requesting a transfer off of Taris and it had been a little exciting at first to be on a ship instead of a planet.

The appeal of being stationed within the fleet vanished after Taris' bombardment and while the world had been filled with scum and villainy and had been rather boring, Sarna had friends that had died there and she silently thanked the Force or whatever had led her to the mysterious stranger that had convinced her to rethink her position within the Sith Empire. Tauryn Katarn was a name she would never forget as he had saved her life that day and Sarna was grateful that Saul Karath ordered them to stand down when they'd encountered the Revanchists. Darth Revan had been the type of leader that could talk you into walking out of an airlock if it suited him, but he was also the kind of leader who would be at your shoulder, right next to you when you did it. Malak had been such a man once, but the aftermath of the Mandalorian war had twisted him into something else and Sarna shuddered unconsciously, her hand running through her honey-blonde hair as she finally reached her quarters.

An hour passed as the Republic and Revanchist fleets fought one another and Sarna was beginning to doze off at her desk when a general quarters alarm sounded and she rushed to her gear, preparing her rifle and her armor before donning her helm and rushing to the corridor. The alarm was for boarders or intruders if her memory served correctly and the Sith soldier rushed down the corridor, her boots clicking on the hull before she rounded the corner of the passageway leading to the lift and came face-to-face with a blonde-haired woman with piercing blue eyes and blonde hair. Sarna took only an instant to find her voice from her surprise and spoke the woman's name.

"Kaera?"  
The Sith asked incredulously, her eyes moving to spot Carth Onasi standing several feet behind the Jedi with his weapons raised in her direction. Training took over and Sarna ducked back, the blaster bolt missing her head by inches and she raised her own weapon in a warning, shouting out an appropriate response.

"What the _Hell_, Carth!"

Carth was poised to take another shot when Kaera raised her hand, stopping Carth as she studied the Sith soldier before her. There was no intent from the soldier to kill them, only confusion and annoyance and Kaera frowned, trying to place the voice.

"Do I know you, soldier?"  
The Jedi asked warily, wishing for her lightsaber as she hefted an unwieldy blaster rifle confiscated from one of her Sith guards. Her thoughts had been unfocused since the torture Saul Karath had put her and Carth through and she was weakened enough to have not sensed Sarna's approach. Sarna lowered her weapon a fraction, her mouth tightening before she saw another figure behind Carth and Kaera. The Sith felt something within her stomach as she glanced around Carth's bulky form, hoping to catch a glimpse of the man who'd been with Carth and Kaera on Taris but when she got a good look at Jolee, Sarna tried to hide her disappointment. She had really hoped Tauryn and his friends made it off of Taris and when she saw Kaera and Carth, she truly hoped to see Tauryn as well, despite the situation unfolding around them.

"Its me, Sarna. We met on Taris?"  
The Sith persisted, her training telling her to shoot the odd trio but her heart telling her not to. A smart move, as the three would have ended her if their confusion hadn't stayed their hands.  
"I'm sorry... that was- Sarna?"  
Kaera asked, her eyes widening slightly in surprise as the Sith lowered her weapon and removed her helmet. Sarna grinned at the Jedi, frowning briefly when she got a good look at Kaera's Sith robes that the Jedi had recovered from a storage locker near their torture cells. Carth was wearing his mercenary outfit from Korriban but it was the yet unidentified member of the trio that brought Sarna's weapon back up.

"I'm glad you got off of Taris, but what are you doing here and who is that man with you and what are you doing on this ship?"  
Sarna asked in a serious tone, her eyes flickering to Jolee to emphasize her point. Carth seemed a little less trigger happy and was trying to decide whether to shoot Sarna and keep going to the bridge of the _Leviathan_ to confront Saul and break the lockdown of the landing bay or to try to reason with her. Kaera seemed to be debating the merits of shooting Sarna as well, her thumb sliding over her rifle's selector switch and dropping its kill charge to a milder stun setting.

"I'm sorry, but we can't be kept prisoners."  
Kaera stated, her weapon rising and getting off a blast that knocked Sarna to the ground. A moment's hesitation had stilled the Sith's finger over her weapon and Carth grimaced down at the fallen Sith before he saw that she was still breathing.

"Lets go."  
Kaera ordered, peeking around the corner while Carth covered her and Jolee watched their backs. Grunting as he passed Sarna's unconscious form, Jolee glanced down at the young woman with a frown, sensing nothing malicious in her aura. She seemed like an average young woman to his senses and he was glad he had made the decision to _sneak_ past the patrols. Most were just conscripts from Sith-captured worlds doing their part to avoid repercussions to their families for disloyal service and Jolee was uncomfortable taking in a side in a civil war again, especially one between Jedi.

"Who the Hell was that anyways?"  
Jolee asked as he followed after the two younger humans, his aches subsiding slightly as adrenaline rose in his blood. Kaera sneered slightly as she answered, cutting off Carth's much nicer response.

"Some schutta that Revan charmed into helping us on Taris. Death is distasteful and should be avoided."  
The last part was said more to herself as Kaera tried to convince herself that the threat Sarna represented to them, should she awaken was not worth the cost of a human life. It had absolutely nothing to do with her conscience twisting slightly at the sight of the other woman's youthful face and warm eyes or the pale blue mixed with gray in Sarna's aura. It also had nothing to do with guilt over having to use the woman to get past the Sith lockdown of the Lower and Under cities on Taris.

_"Nothing at all..."_

Kaera decided, forcing her thoughts to the here and now as she took off around the corner and to the lift at the head of the ramp. It would lead to the Command Deck and a quick exercise in misdirection would be sufficient to clear the way to the bridge and the console they needed access to.

Jolee watched as Carth and Kaera moved through the corridors ahead of him, their movements almost in sync with one another as they slipped past patrol routes and disabled security measures. They made a good team and Jolee amused himself at watching the younger humans. There were alternatives to fighting, to direct confrontations and despite the anger he knew Carth and Kaera harbored towards the Sith, they genuinely valued life and both were using their skills to avoid confrontation.

Jolee's faith in Carth's respect for life ended when they hit the _Leviathan's _bridge. At the sight of Saul Karath at the head of the bridge, behind a squad of red-armored Sith Elites and two Dark Jedi, the Republic Commander had gone ballistic and had shown just what a Force-blind man with enough motivation could accomplish. If he hadn't been so busy fending off one of the Dark Jedi and trying to help Kaera deal with the other, Jolee would have been impressed with the accuracy of Carth's shots and the speed at which the squad of Sith soldiers fell. Carth and Saul exchanged fire briefly, the Sith Admiral using a console for cover while Carth dived behind the body of one of the Sith he'd slain. The bridge crew had tried briefly to intervene, but most were dead by the hail of blasterbolts Carth unleashed upon them. Kaera had already dealt with her Dark Jedi assailant and was using the fallen Sith's lightsaber to kill or disable what remained of the bridge crew.

Jolee caught sight of Karath going down as Carth shot the console the man was crouched behind and it exploded as it overloaded, shrapnel and plasma striking Karath as he was thrown across the deck of the bridge to land with a grunt before the Republic soldier. Carth as on Saul in seconds, one of his blasters in a holster while the other slammed into Saul's face.

"You son of a bitch! I'll kill you!"  
Carth spat, kicking the wounded Admiral in his ribs and feeling a sense of satisfaction as Saul roared in pain. A loud snap was heard as a rib cracked and Saul reached out feebly, trying to fend off the assault before Kaera was on Carth, pulling the man back and giving him a look that seemed searching, as if she wasn't certain of the man before her. A vibrant red swirled ominously against black in Carth's aura and Jolee grunted as he turned from the scene. Carth hadn't opened up to Jolee like he had to Revan on Taris and the old former Jedi was uncertain of the reasons behind Carth's drastic descent into rage. The Republic Commander was struggling against Kaera's unyielding hold and sputtering incoherently in a blind rage.

He'd saved his anger for the moment he confronted Saul Karath and it had made him a deadly, deadly foe. Ignoring his fears and uncertainties, Carth had recklessly but also successfully assaulted nearly a dozen Sith and had overcome them swiftly. It was luck, really; though some would say it was the will of the Force and Jolee kept his senses on what was behind them, not in front of them as he made his way to a console, tracking the movements of the thousands of Sith on the vessel as they patrolled the corridors and took positions around sensitive areas of the ship.

Saul was calling weakly to Carth and Kaera felt the soldier's tense muscles relax a fraction as he heard the pained voice of the Sith Admiral. For a moment, pain flashed across Carth's face as he saw what he was trying to do, but he pushed it behind the haze of red that had filled his vision, ripping himself from Kaera's weakened grasp and lunging for Saul as he grasped the man's uniformed shirt, pulling Karath from the deck bodily and slamming him brutally back down.

"What the Hell do you have to say to me, Saul? After what you did to our home, to my family, what do you have to say to me?"  
Kaera couldn't hear what Saul was saying at first, the whispered words so quiet that only the Admiral and Carth could comprehend them, but the flare of hope that had cut through Carth was quickly crushed in the realization of what was being told to him.

_"Dus- Dustil is alive, Carth. I took him myself f-from Telos. He's strong in ways you- you never were. He'd being trained even now to be one of us. On this very world you see beneath us._"

A violent cough came from Saul as he smiled at Carth, the smile not reaching his eyes and carrying a malicious satisfaction at what he knew would happen. Carth would seek out his son on Korriban and destroy the entire mission to save the last of his family. The Star Forge would remain hidden from the Jedi and the Republic and he would have, for once; done his duty as a soldier to Revan. Knowing the man that had ended him would likely die in the process was a bonus.

"You didn- didn't know that, did you... Carth?"  
Saul laughed weakly, a pained wheeze passing over him as he lay still, his life-force passing from his body moments later. Carth continued to grip the man's shirt, staring down at Saul with a look of mixed rage and desperation.

"You son of a bitch. No! Dammit! No!!!"  
Carth threw Saul's body aside, standing and moving to the viewport of the _Leviathan_ as his brown eyes fixed to the dry and inhospitable world. He looked almost as if he was trying to see his son, which would have been impossible from such a distance, but he still tried and when Kaera rested her hand on his shoulder, fixing him with a questioning gaze he turned and stared at the Jedi with blank, empty eyes.

"We have to get back down there. We have to find- Goddamit Kaera, he's my son! I can't leave him in this place! I can't not try to save him. What would that make me if I didn't try to save my son? Even if he's lost and even if I thought he was dead, he's alive now and that sounds like a second chance to me. Kaera... please... I- I won't jeopardize the mission, but he's my _son!_ I can't just leave him there without trying."  
Carth turned away, gazing back at Korriban with an intense look.

"I have to try... my son... Dustil, he's down there, being made into one of those Sith monsters and I can't let that happen!"  
Carth pulled away from Kaera, missing her flinch and the look of sorrow on her face as he passed Saul's corpse. Sparing only a glance for the man who's played a part in ruining his life and had ironically given part of it back with his dying breath, Carth walked off the bridge, his hands tightening around his pistols as he kept his eyes sharp for any Sith.

Sarna had been lucky he hadn't known about his son before this. Before he had been a man on his way to the grave, only comforted by revenge he knew was coming upon them. He was ready to die, would have happily followed his family after finishing off Saul, but to hear his son was still alive and to know the Starmaps were still needed, Carth was now a man on a vastly personal mission; and he would kill anyone who stood between him and his son.

AN: Just a quick note. I'm doing my best to make Revan's... well scary bastardliness a progression and not a simple flick of a switch. I'm trying to make him as complex and flawed and _real_ as anyone else. This story's entire purpose is to illustrate in essence what would drive a good man to do evil things and I hope I can convey it. Well... that or I can make a pretty memorable and frightening character that is suffering from severe psychological trauma and a healthy dose of sociopathic tendencies. Hope you enjoyed!


	35. Chapter 34: Subtlety

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"They will only respect you, will only follow you so long as you are __**perfect**__ in their eyes. So long as you are powerful and heroic and to put it simply __**better **__than they are. If for one moment they think they can do the job better, they will gladly take your head and do as much."_

_~Aven Sek'tai to Revan Qel-Droma regarding the Korriban Sith~_

_  
_Chapter 34: Subtlety

Revan was staring out of the main viewport of the _Leviathan_, his arms crossed over his chest as he stared at Korriban. The Dark Lord was clad in his battle robes and armor, the red and black of his mask obscuring his identity and masking his voice. The lights above the Dark Lord flickered as the damage done by Carth and Kaera's escape made itself known and Revan cursed as he stumbled slightly when the ship listed and the gravity shift from Korriban hit the former Sith flagship.

Running a hand along his mask in frustration and glancing about to see if anyone saw, Revan grumbled in annoyance as he noticed Aven Sek'tai staring at him with a frown.

"Milord?"  
The Twi'lek asked, wondering why Revan had been taken off-guard by the expected gravity shift. Revan shook his head, waving off the Twi'lek as he moved to where Saul Karath was laying, dead on the deck. Revan's form didn't even waver when the next, violent gravity shift hit the _Leviathan_ as it pulled back into a safe orbit. Eyeing the positioning of Saul's body, Revan waved in a Sith medic, watching as the Sith checked for any lingering vitals before making a passable attempt at resuscitation. With the damage done to Saul Karath's body, any attempts at reviving the man were met with failure and the Dark Lord merely offered a nod to the Sith medic when the inevitable was confirmed.

"We'll still need a competent commander for the fleet. We're operating with less than a thousand ships total. That's including our support craft. Its enough to be a thorn in someone's side, yes; but its not enough to effect this war in any meaningful way. We hardly have over a million followers and when faced with the numbers from the Republic _and _Malak's Sith..."  
Revan turned his eyes from where a small medical crew was hauling off the _Leviathan's_ dead commander to Aven. There was an undercurrent of fury in his tone, but it was dampened by the mask's voice amplifier and all that came out was a harsh, cutting tone that had even the formidable Twi'lek Revanchist suppressing a flinch.

"They have thousands of times the forces that we do. A direct confrontation like the one we had here would be suicidal if it happened anywhere near an active and full-strength Republic fleet. We can't afford to waste ourselves on one another when a greater threat lurks at the edge of the galaxy. What we need to do, Aven; is play the Republic and Malak's Sith against one another. The people of the Republic are so weary of the war that the very foundations of their strength is crumbling away. Malak is strong and in control of the centerpiece of the Sith Empire, but he is also concentrating all of his forces in one area. It's a stupid move, but one I expected him to make. He's afraid of a power vacuum and is backing into a corner with as many ships and men and guns as he can get... It would be advantageous for the Republic to become aware of the Star Forge's location for our immediate concerns... but the Star Forge is _vital_ to the efforts needed to undertake a campaign against the True Sith. It would otherwise take decades to collect and craft the equipment needed for bringing the fight to them."  
Revan shook his head in disgust, marching across the damaged bridge to Aven's side and continuing on towards the blast doors leading to the lift off of the Command Deck.

"We have to fight smart, Aven. We have to be faster than the Sith or the Republic and we have to work within our means. If we overstretch our forces we become vulnerable. Our greatest assets at this point in time is our unpredictability and the greater threat of the Republic and Malak. I am merely an upstart in their eyes. This battle will cause the Republic to go on guard and they may send a fleet large enough to destroy us next time. We need to destroy their infrastructure. I didn't want to before, when I had the Star Forge and it would have made the conquest much easier... but chaos is our ally now, Aven."  
Darth Revan moved with graceful steps through the corridors of the _Leviathan's_ Command Deck, coming to a halt outside of the lift that led off of the _tower_ section that housed the observation platform and the control center of the former flagship. A foolish design, but effective in its purpose. The point behind such a blatant target was that the Sith had no fear of death. Intimidation along with powerful shield generators and reenforced armor plating took away some of the risks of an external bridge. Entering the lift, the Dark Lord turned to his silent companion, frowning beneath his mask at the Twi'lek's stony expression.

"You think they had help escaping?"  
Revan questioned, having been thinking something similar. Carth Onasi and Kaera Nurr were dangerous and respectably skilled, but even they would have trouble escaping from a Force-cage in the middle of a lockdown during a space battle. It was the perfect time to orchestrate an escape though, and Revan admired the escape as much as he was annoyed by it. Carth and Kaera had done some serious damage to the _Leviathan_ and it would need to be hauled back to a drydock to have its systems stripped down and rebuilt after whatever the Hell Carth had done to its databanks.

"There was a soldier in the Med-bay that claimed to have run in to the escapees. She described a third man whom she thought was someone named Tauryn Katarn, but she said he wasn't. She only thought he was because she knew Commander Onasi and Knight Nurr personally. I've yet to collect a statement from the soldier, but her description of the third man indicated that there was someone else traveling with Carth and Kaera and that the Cathar Juhani has betrayed our trust."  
Revan frowned, debating the merits of that argument.  
"There was a battle going on and the Republic fleet had Jedi amongst them. A Jedi Knight could have infiltrated the _Leviathan _during the battle and caused all of this. Both are reasonable scenarios though... Have the Academy informed that Juhani is to be sent to the _Leviathan_ as soon as possible. I will speak with the soldier who witnessed Carth and Kaera's escape and find out who this third person was. Are you sure the security feeds found nothing?"  
Aven shook her head to Revan's question as she activated her wrist-communicator and relayed the message to have Juhani brought to them. After receiving an affirmation, the Twi'lek Revanchist turned to her leader, a thoughtful frown marring her young and beautiful features.

"There was something else, Milord. An agent was able to infiltrate the Temple of the Ancients on Rakata Prime. Lord Malak has taken Bastila Shan as his apprentice and has left her in charge of the Temple. From what the infiltrator was able to gather, Malak is expecting you to show up personally and wants Bastila to prove her loyalty to him by killing you."  
Revan briefly reached for the weakened bond he shared with Bastila, feeling a familiar warmth, but also a coldness that hadn't been there before Manaan. Unconcerned, Revan voiced his opinion of the matter.

"That is a fool's errand. I have made it clear to _Darth_ Shan that I wish her to be my apprentice. If she wishes it, she must take the initiative. My offer was not just a courtesy for her actions in preserving my life. She is magnificent when not stifled by Jedi ignorance or Malak's flawed views of the Force. She will come into her powers as we all have and when she is ready, she will join us. She has the potential to be my equal, Aven; and that is something I would very much like to witness."

It was as close to an order as Revan would give to his second in command to not attack Bastila and Aven read between the lines. Straightening slightly, the Revanchist tilted her head stiffly as she suppressed her disappointment that Revan would replace her so readily. She had loyally held together the Revanchists after his death and had earned the right to be his second. That Revan would regard the turned Padawan so highly was almost an insult, but Aven bore it silently, knowing that Revan's word was law to the Revanchists. She would not waver in her loyalty for anything.

"See that you don't."  
Revan's cold voice held an edge to it that hadn't been there before and Aven stiffened further, her eyes widening when she realized that the Dark Lord had picked up on her stray thoughts.

"This is not the time for vanity, Aven. Your skill and loyalty is not in question. I am grateful for your loyalty so I will grant you this; Bastila Shan saved my life and she helped me escape from the Jedi when they tried to wipe away my identity on Dantooine for a second time. She shares a powerful Force-bond with me that would be difficult to transcend. It is a powerful and binding thing that shares our powers, thoughts and memories and it gives her the potential to be my _equal_ not my _apprentice_ and not my _servant_. She is to be given the same regard as I am given and you still answer only to me, Aven Sek'tai. Are we clear?"  
The Twi'lek Revanchist swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat at the icy tone in which her Master spoke. Bowing deeply, Aven said nothing in response aside from a mumbled affirmation. Revan merely stared at Aven for another silent moment before he turned his attention back to the lift doors. The descent into the _Leviathan's _lower decks was completed in silence and the Dark Lord said nothing when Aven excused herself on the flight deck and took a transport back to the _Reclaimer_. He had no time for pettiness and jealousy. Bastila was stronger than Aven though he doubted the turned Padawan was as deadly. Where Bastila had spent most of her time training as a Jedi and harnessing her Battle Meditation, Aven had been trained in how to kill quickly and quietly. She was one of the first to go through the assassin training on Malachor V and one of the best. Still, she lacked the powerful Force connection that Bastila wielded and she was almost _too_ submissive to his demands. Aven had been a slave most of her life and while she was free to make her own choices, it seemed all she had done was traded one Master for another.

It bothered Revan slightly and he wondered not for the first time what that said about him.

Carth Onasi ground his teeth together as he stalked past a Sith soldier. The silver-armored soldier did not even spare the Republic Commander a second glance and Carth was grateful for that as he walked on through Dreshdae with a purpose. Still dressed in his _mercenary_ outfit, Carth was clad in a dark gray tunic, black trousers and a long duster-type coat similar to the one he used to wear at the outbreak of the Mandalorian wars aside from its color. He preferred brown to the current black, but it was necessary to complete the image. Two heavily modified blaster pistols rested at his hips and a small holdout blaster was hidden in a shoulder holster beneath his long coat.

"Get out of my way."  
Carth spat, glaring at the Jedi blocking his path. Kaera Nurr was clad in Dark Jedi robes, the black material hugging her athletic form, though the effect was lost beneath a thick black cloak. The Jedi's blonde hair was pulled back into a simple ponytail and her blue eyes gleamed slightly when they met Carth's brown.

"_Think_, Carth. We can't afford to be captured again. This isn't just about your son, its about the Republic and the Order as well. They will recognize us if we go in there."  
A muscle twitched along Carth's jawline, his expression hardening. Did she think he would endanger the Republic he had sacrificed his family and over half his life for?  
"Get out of my way."  
Carth repeated, his tone almost a match of the one Revan had when he chastised Aven over her misgivings over Bastila. Startled, Kaera allowed Carth to pass her, shivering slightly at the chill that climbed up her spine when Carth's voice dropped to a deathly whisper. Regaining her equilibrium, Kaera moved to catch up with Carth, falling in step beside him and wondering exactly how they would get into the Academy. The answer came to them in the form of a Cathar former Jedi and Kaera spotted Juhani in almost the same moment the Cathar spotted her. Guiding Carth over towards Juhani, Kaera waved the former Jedi over and frowned at the younger woman, debating the events of the last few hours. Juhani had obviously not turned over Jolee and while she was still wary of the Cathar and the taint she still carried from the grove on Dantooine, Kaera was inclined to believe that Juhani would not betray them.

Carth was not so inclined.

"What the Hell are you doing here?"  
Carth asked when he realized that Juhani was roaming freely on Korriban while he and Kaera had been imprisoned and tortured.

"Carth, its good to see you and Kaera escaped. I knew Jolee wouldn't fail."  
Glaring at the Cathar, Carth considered the events that led to his escape before letting out a long sigh and relenting. He may have been paranoid, but he wasn't stupid.

"I have something for you..."  
Juhani began when a heavy silence descended across the trio. Jolee was waiting at the ship, keeping the engines hot in case they needed a quick getaway and Juhani smiled mentally as she handed a datapad to the Republic Commander. She was saving him a lot of trouble. Carth stared in disbelief at the information on the datapad before he looked up again and offered a simple nod of approval to Juhani. Pleased, Juhani allowed a small smile to grace her lips before it fell when she sensed part of Carth's decision as he handed the datapad to Kaera and pulled one of his pistols.

"The mission is complete, Kaera. I'm going to get my son now."  
Startled at the sudden shift in Carth's aura, Kaera barely glanced at the datapad before she took off after Carth, her right hand pulling her lightsaber while her left held the datapad in a firm grip. The information was vital to the survival of the Jedi Order and the Republic but she didn't want Carth to charge headlong into the Sith Academy on the faint possibility of saving his son.  
"Carth you can't-"  
A shift in the Force, a cold and overpowering presence making itself known brought a halt to Kaera's words as her eyes widened in disbelief and she turned around, expecting to see Darth Revan appear out of thin air. Juhani stiffened as well at the disturbance, her yellow eyes turning skyward to search out where the _Leviathan_ rested. Revan was surprised about something and it had been broadcast rather loudly through the Force.

"Do you know a Sith Student named Dustil?"  
The Republic soldier asked, oblivious to the disturbance in the Force. Snapping out of her daze, Juhani shook her head and frowned thoughtfully.

"Dak would know where your son is, Carth. You should both return to your ship. I'll contact you on our old frequency if I find him. Those coordinates need to reach the Republic and the Jedi."  
Carth nodded grimly, his face set in a permanent frown as he tried to fight off the urge to storm into the Academy and find his son himself. Juhani had proven herself to him by not turning over Jolee and finding the last Starmap. Any other doubts he had were chased away with the hope he felt at finding his son again and reconnecting with his lost family.

"Kaera can handle that, Juhani. Let me go with you... let me- let me see my son..."

Knowing part of Carth's story due to Revan's rather odd habit of ranting during her short time as a Rogue Padawan, Juhani could not find it within herself to deny the Republic Commander after all he'd lost such a simple request.

Revan nearly turned on his heel and left the room when he spotted Sarna. The Sith Junior Officer was sitting on a medical bed, her left hand clenched over her stomach as the effects of the point-blank stun blast wracked her body. Shifting when she spotted the Dark Lord, Sarna stood shakily, saluting Revan and dropping her gaze when the Sith Lord merely stared at her silently.

"Good to see you made it off Taris."  
Revan commented, much to the confusion of the Junior Officer. Frowning at the comment and noting something familiar in the man's voice, Sarna merely remained silent, waiting for the questions she knew would come. A part of her was fearful of what the newly-restored Sith Lord would do to her. Failure had never been taken lightly in Darth Malak's ranks and she expected much the same treatment if not worse in Revan's ranks. The man had been Malak's teacher after all.

"Carth Onasi is a Republic Commander and Kaera Nurr is a Jedi Knight. There was a third person who helped with their escape and I know for a fact it was not you."  
Revan's voice was calm, the filter of his mask making it sound harsh and Sarna jumped slightly, pulling away from her dark thoughts to stare at the towering Sith Lord. A sudden fear gripped her heart when she realized she had been played not once, but twice by the Jedi and Republic. Taris and her brief encounter with Tauryn Katarn flashed across her mind and she flushed when she saw the Dark Lord stiffen. She knew enough of the Force to know that those with Jedi-powers could pick up thoughts.

"Pleasant though those thoughts may be, you were only duped once by the enemy."  
Revan's voice was gentle, his left hand raising and brushing back his hood before he worked on removing his mask. Sarna stared at the Dark Lord with wide eyes, her expression shifting from shock to disbelief.  
"Tauryn?"  
The Junior Officer's voice was choked and she blinked in mute horror for a moment before collecting herself.

"I suppose an explanation would help?"  
Revan asked, offering a smirk to the young woman. Sarna could only nod numbly as she listened to Revan explain his _capture_ and _death_ by the hands of the Republic and the Jedi. Several hours passed before Revan finished speaking and Sarna was still leaning against the medical bed, her mind numb with shock and her body trembling with anger. What the Jedi had done to Revan was horrifying and his calm voice had instilled a greater horror at the events within the soldier's mind. Something was very wrong with Revan and she could see the change in his eyes since Taris, how his face had grown paler and how the stress-lines beside his eyes had become more defined. Reaching out blindly, Sarna rested her hand gently on Revan's cheek, staring into his blank, brown eyes with a pained expression.

"What would you ask of me, Milord?"  
Revan frowned at Sarna's tone. Stepping back from the intrusion of the Junior Officer's hand, Revan absently rubbed the back of his gloved hand against his cheek before replacing his mask and hood.  
"Your best is all I can ask of you, soldier. Describe the third person with Carth and Kaera."  
Something in Revan's tone snapped Sarna out of the pity she felt for the man and she stared at him as if he had grown two heads. She'd subtly offered herself as comfort to the man. She knew he wasn't shy or a prude and yet he had simply brushed it off as nothing. A little put-off, Sarna began describing what she had seen of Jolee Bindo, stopping when Revan spoke a curse in Mando'a.

"That old Jedi That's been helping them since Kashyyyk. He was there on Manaan when I was skewered by Nomi and shot by that nobody."  
Shaking his head in annoyance, Revan moved to a nearby terminal, accessing the holonet and searching for an image of Jolee Bindo to pass along to the rest of the Revanchist Sith. Staring at the Dark Lord's back, Sarna took a steadying breath and stood, pulling her armor on slowly and casting covert glances at the man's back.

"Sarna, if you're feeling up to it; we're going to the Academy."  
Surprised that the leader of the Revanchists was even giving her the option of bowing out of apprehending his former companions, Sarna saluted reflexively and answered as she finished adjusting her armor.

"I am fit for combat, Milord."

Revan nodded to himself, not even bothering to check Sarna's status. All Sith soldiers were trained to know the limits of their bodies and minds and if Sarna was secure in her status, Revan would accept it without question. He wasn't defenseless as it were. Pausing briefly at a stray thought from Sarna, Revan crossed to the young woman's bedside, tapping the index and middle finger of his right hand on her abdomen. Sarna dropped her armored breastplate with a gasp, doubling over and clutching at the black material of her bodysuit with a pained grimace. Revan all but lifted her off her feet and sat her on the medical bed, pulling up her bodysuit's pressurized tunic and observing the dark bruise that discolored the Sith soldier's toned mid-section. The point-blank stun-bolt had left its mark, even through the standard issue Sith armor and Revan brushed his fingers gently over the bruise, ignoring the way Sarna shivered and melted into his touch.

"There is no internal damage but if your armor brushes against the wound it would cause a distracting amount of pain."  
Frowning briefly, Revan removed his fingers and held his right hand over the bruise, channeling the Force into his palm and watching as the bruise faded after several moments. Sarna was flushed slightly and breathing heavily at the sensation of her bruise healing as well as Revan's touch and she fought back a shudder when he pulled back and the chill of the recycled air struck her exposed abdomen. Unable to form a coherent thought for a moment, Sarna jerked in surprise when Revan's filtered voice reached her senses.

"Proceed, Officer Sarna."  
The formality of Revan's tone spurred the young woman into action and she readjusted her bodysuit, making sure the pressure seals were aligned properly before pulling on the rest of her armor and double-checking the airtight seals. Nodding at Sarna's precautions, Revan turned and left, only pausing at the doorway to the infirmary to wait for Sarna before the two humans took off down the corridor towards the lift that would take them to the _Leviathan's_ hangar deck.

Aboard the _Reclaimer_ Mission Vao was bored. More than that, she was in the presence of Sith... well, technically former Sith, but Darksiders none-the-less. Mission had seen what the Sith had done to her homeworld firsthand. She'd watched as some of the very ships making up the Revanchist fleet had fired on Taris and killed countless people, destroyed the streets she'd grown up on and turned lifelong friends into ashes.

Seeing that kind of thing and looking outside of the viewport to see the ship, the _flagship_ of that fleet being towed away to be repaired while its crew was dispersed through the other ships was weighing on the young Twi'lek's mind. She'd chosen friendship over what was likely the smart thing to do on Dantooine and it had gotten her brother freed from Tusken Raiders. The memory of her brother made the young Twi'lek grimace slightly, anger and shame over the harsh reality of what kind of man her brother was warring with her relief that he was still alive and relatively in good health.

Sighing, Mission absently spun her blaster pistol in her hand, testing her dexterity. The sound of her door opening nearly caused the girl to shoot herself as she jumped and fumbled for her weapon.

"Having fun?"  
Canderous Ordo grumbled, scowling at the girl's confused and suspicious expression. Only a year older than the Mandalorian age of adulthood, Canderous was less inclined to see Mission as a child and while the girl had appreciated the gesture, whenever Canderous did something remotely thoughtful it bothered her.

"What's up, Candy?"  
Mission asked brightly, hiding her unease behind a cheerful smile that made the Mandalorian scowl even more. Amused at the annoyance on Canderous' face, Mission took pity on the man and decided to stop playing with the man.

"Revan's raising all Hell over the comms about something or other on Korriban about the Cathar and Republic boy and that other Jedi we got off Taris with."  
Flinching slightly at the mention of Taris, Mission sobered slightly when she realized Revan, the man he was becoming; would have no problems with killing Carth and Kaera on the spot after their escape from the _Leviathan._

"B-but he'll kill them, Canderous! He may as well have when he sent them to Karath."  
Crossing her arms and turning away from the Mandalorian, Mission wondered idly where Zalbaar was. It wasn't like her friend to be gone so long when Revan had charged the Wookiee personally with watching over her.

_"Probably stuffing his gullet in the ship's galley."_

Mission thought with an eye-roll. Zalbaar's stomach sometimes took precedence over his mind. Glancing at Canderous, Mission saw that the Mandalorian was untroubled with Carth and Kaera's possible fates.

"Listen kid, you picked a side on Dantooine. Your choice was between Revan and the Jedi. You picked Revan. Don't back out of it just cause your conscience is telling you its wrong. Revan was- is a good man. Regardless of how ruthless or violent he is, you have to remember he was raised as one of my people. As a Mandalorian. You have to admit he's a saint by most Mandalorian standards."  
A half-laugh, half-sob came from Mission as she shook her head, her eyes filling with tears as she turned to stare at the Mandalorian thoughtfully. Ever since Tatooine, Canderous had been... well, not nicer, but not as harsh and it gave Mission a perspective on the Mandalorian she hadn't had before. It made him seem half-human and while she wasn't human herself, it was just a turn of phrase and one that fit.

"You trying to reassure me, Candy?"  
Mission asked teasingly, smirking at the Mandalorian's half-horrified, half-disgusted expression.

"Hell no."  
Canderous answered immediately, a scowl marring his aged features as he glared at the Twi'lek. Mission's smirk fell as she realized she had crossed some invisible Mandalorian touchy-feely line and she sighed in annoyance at the look on Canderous' face.  
"You got it in your head that Revan's wrong. But you haven't seen much beyond Taris. Even then you aren't old enough to remember the Jedi Temple there, or what happened there before my people invaded."  
Mission scowled, glaring at Canderous.

"I remember that!"  
The Twi'lek challenged, not backing down. Canderous mentally smirked at the fire in Mission's eyes when she stood up to him and he nodded to himself.

"Its good that you do. The point is that part of you knew what the Jedi did to Revan on Dantooine before and what they tried to do again was wrong. You also knew, I'm sure; that the Republic likely had a hand in it. Revan was a Sith Lord, but he was also a Jedi Knight. Whatever he is now, kid... well, it ain't exactly a bad thing; all things considered. Look at the galaxy right now and look at Revan. He's trying... in his own way to fix this all and he's not so ignorant to think it can be done without bloodshed. Stick with him kid, or he'll kill you. Revan isn't looking at the individual right now, he's looking at the whole. I remember hearing stories during the war about when Revan got like that and believe me, you better make yourself useful to the man or he'll put you somewhere you'll get left behind or die. It's the strategist and the Jedi in him, Mission, not the man. If he can't make you useful to his fight, he puts you out of danger if he can."  
Remembering a conversation with Juhani about how she became a Jedi, Mission listened to what Canderous said, seeing the truth and logic in the Mandalorian's words and wondering why the man was even bothering. Seeing the silent question, Canderous smirked at the Twi'lek.

"You got skill in some spots none of the rest of us do, kid. That's not only important, its unique. Make sure your on the right side when you figure out how much help or damage you can do, kid."  
Without another word Canderous left, leaving Mission to her thoughts.

Zalbaar was, as Mission suspected; eating in the ship's galley when Revan approached him. Curious as to what the former Dark Lord wanted of him, Zalbaar stopped eating and fixed Revan with a questioning expression as he growled his concerns aloud. Revan was flanked by a silver-armored Sith soldier that Zalbaar hadn't seen before, but the Wookiee dismissed the presence when Revan explained why he was there.

"I've got a mission for you and... Mission, Zalbaar. Do you know where she is?"Zalbaar growled an affirmation and left his food to lead Revan to Mission's quarters. A knock and a muffled leave to enter from Mission revealed the confused face of the young Twi'lek.

"Officer Sarna, return to the transport."  
The Sith soldier flanking Revan saluted and left without a word or hesitation, knowing an order when she heard it.

"I've got something important I need you to do, Mission."  
Raising a brow and grinning, Mission invited Revan and Zalbaar in and sat on her bed, excitedly waiting for Revan to explain what he wanted form her. Canderous' conversation was enlightening to Mission and well-timed. She'd been doubting the side she'd picked in the war, feeling useless and forgotten and locked away in the _Reclaimer_. Canderous was smart enough to know something else was going on and had let the Twi'lek in on his knowledge.

"Carth and Kaera and a Jedi named Jolee Bindo are on Korriban trying to gain access to the Starmap. I believe Juhani may be helping them so it is likely that they have this information. What I need from you, Mission is a bit complicated, but I know you can handle it. I need you and Zalbaar here to appear to betray me. Its no secret the Sith are evil and you have as much right as anyone to have your reservations but you proved yourself to me on Dantooine when you helped to free me from those who would see me turned into an invalid. I'm grateful for that, Mission and I am placing a lot of trust in you with this. Can you handle it?"  
Mission nodded her agreement immediately and Revan didn't bother checking the Force to see if the Twi'lek was being honest with him. The earnest and pleased expression on Mission's face was clear enough that he didn't need the Force to read Mission's honest acceptance and trust.

"On this datapad is a frequency I need you to input in a computer console. The console is beneath the Temple of the Ancients on a world designated Lehon by Czerka Corp's stupid mapping system for the galaxy. The locals call it Rakata Prime though. I know Carth and Kaera are seeking the Star Forge. What I need from you is your presence with them when they get inside of the Temple. Bastila will be there and it is very important that you leave your mind open to hers."  
Mission frowned, voicing her problem with that.

"I don't have the Force like you or Bastila, Rev. I can't do that..."  
Revan smirked, shaking his head as he glanced at Zalbaar.

"Everyone has the Force within them, Mission. Just not the potential that most Jedi hold. Its an subconscious defense on your part, nearly involuntary. Bastila will know how to read you, what I need is for you to not resist when she does. It will feel strange, possible even a little painful when she reads you, ut its vital that she does. Do you understand?"  
Mission nodded, her expression serious and Revan nodded his approval before continuing.  
"Malak has likely reprogrammed the codes to the console, which is why it is important for you to be there. I have the utmost faith in your abilities. I need you to hack the console and program that frequency into the disruptor field generator. The Star Forge will be unaffected by this, but the Sith and Republic fleets will not be. It will disable both fleets and from there, I plan to bring in the Revanchist forces. We'll have free run of the system and we can force an agreement between the Sith and the Republic. We can end the war in a single day if this works out."  
Mission smirked slightly at the plan Revan had, agreeing to follow through with her part of the deal. Revan was putting a lot of trust in her and Bastila's responses to the plan, but Mission knew Revan knew what he was doing and decided to go along with the plan. It'd be fun to be part of the reason two massive fleets would suddenly find themselves dead in space anyways.

"Zalbaar, I need you to put on more of a show. You're going along to make sure Mission is protected. Despite your lifedebt to me you swore it to a man who doesn't exist. I am Revan Qel-Droma of the Bloodraven Clan, not Tauryn Katarn. As such... the lifedebt is... flexible. I need you to make it appear that your honor was insulted by swearing a lifedebt to a man I am not. Can you handle that?"  
Zalbaar grumbled and growled in annoyance at such a suggestion. The lifedebt was a sacred thing to Wookiees and not as fluid as Revan was making it out to be. Still, he would do as Revan commanded and _play along_. Smirking at the success of his scheming, Revan told both to prepare their equipment and meet him at the transport they'd all take to Korriban.

As he walked away from Mission's quarters, Revan nodded to Canderous as he passed the Mandalorian, already knowing the Mandalorian's part in Mission's change in attitude. He'd given Canderous the job of convincing Mission to stay on their side and Canderous had done what was necessary, distasteful though pep-talks were to a Mandalorian and Revan smirked as the older Mandalorian fell into step beside him.

"How would you like to be Supreme Commander of the Revanchist fleet? Once we recover Mandalore's mask from the Star Forge we can start rebuilding the Clans and using the Revanchist fleet as their... allies."  
Canderous' smirk matched Revan's and the two continued on in silence, Canderous considering the future of his people under his leadership and Revan's and Revan debating the loose end to his plan. Juhani. Juhani's loyalty to him was questionable, though he doubted the Cathar meant him any real harm, Revan knew well-enough where good intentions led. He'd just have to work around Juhani for the time being. Or kill her. Either solution would work and Revan decided to use his brain instead of his lightsaber. Malak was always the one to use the blade first and then the brain and Revan debated the fate of his fallen friend and apprentice. He still wasn't sure what he was going to do with Alec.


	36. Chapter 35: Pawns

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"Imagine this war as a game of deceit. Were we to face our enemies on even terms, we would overcome them. As true as this statement is, the great flaw in this theory is that we are outnumbered, a stark handful against the massed hordes of the Republic and Malak's Sith. In order for us to win, we can't face our enemies on open fields. We have to fight them wherever we can, where we have the advantage. Its why I attacked Korriban first and why we are leaving it as well. We must be faster and smarter than our opponents if we are to survive. Victory against the numbers we face is impossible if we face them alone or in the open. Its underhanded, I know, Canderous; but we can't afford the losses our foes can. Remember how I made Mandalore waste his forces on Dxun? Many, many more Republic soldiers died there than Mandalorians, but it was a precursor to Malachor V. We had the system and Onderon. We had more ships and we had the layout of the system. Malachor V didn't destroy the Mandalorians as you think. It was merely half of the equation. Half of a two-part battle that took away the advantage of the Mandalorians. If the battles fought on Onderon and Dxun did not occur, Malachor V would have still been the last battle of the war; but the victor would have been Mandalore. You know enough of war not to waste resources, I'd think. To know where to strike your enemy to cause them the most pain? This is simply that, Canderous. Do not think it dishonorable because we chose our battles. Honor has its place, but in this case it leads only to death."  
~Revan Qel-Droma to Canderous Ordo regarding the tactics of the Revanchist Sith~_

Chapter 35: Pawns

In chess, one has to remember the importance of the pawns. While they lack the finesse and power of the rook or the queen, their cunning lay in anonymity. If one can take the queen from their opponent they will, but regard is rarely given to the pawns and as with all forms of combat; the pawns are the pieces that win the battles. A leader's ability to manipulate the pawns as well as the more important pieces is what determines if the leader is worthy of their title, or simply a substitute for a greater mind.

Revan Qel-Droma had never played chess, had never heard of the game in fact; but he was intelligent enough to know that even a nameless soldier could win a battle if given the right opportunity. It was part of the reason for his diversion to the _Reclaimer_ after leaving the _Leviathan_. The logs would show the transport from the _Leviathan_ was en route to Dreshdae while it really went to the _Reclaimer_. Paranoia pays off sometimes and Revan was just paranoid enough to still be alive, yet he bore the scars of each attempt on his life. Each betrayal of a subordinate.

Malak had by far done the most damage of his betrayers simply because Revan did not expect it of Alec. Alec had been loyal to a fault and in Revan's own opinion the better man and Jedi. Alec had balanced out Revan's Mandalorian traits with Jedi sensibility and a sense of justice and what was right and wrong that left Revan confused and irritated at times.

Alec had gotten into his fair share of problems as a result of his unique sense of justice, but he had only once questioned Revan directly. That was over Malachor V and the assassin program Darth Traya had been left in charge of. Revan's trust in his former Jedi Master had been so absolute that when Malak had questioned his wisdom in leaving Kreia in charge, Revan had simply seen red and assaulted his best and at the time, his only friend.

Alec Squinquargesimus had died the moment Revan maimed him and what had emerged from the kolto tank and weeks of therapy had been a monster that mirrored the one Darth Revan had become. It was easy to lose sight of the big picture in the face of such rage. Revan had raged at himself and Alec. The Republic, the Sith and the Mandalorians. Anyone was a fair target to him in that time and it had been the accumulation of a great many dark deeds that had ended in Malak returning Revan's betrayal in kind.  
It was part of the reason Revan never blamed Alec, never felt any blinding rage over what had happened on the _Revenge_. Alec had merely been returning the favor, responding to a far greater slight. To be maimed was a fate worse than death to a Mandalorian and that Revan had done such a thing to someone he once called a brother was one of only a handful of acts Revan did that had no greater purpose. It held no honor and it was a stain on the former Jedi Knight's soul, a scar he carried within himself that never quite healed. It would be difficult for Revan to face Darth Malak, which was why he planned to have Kaera Nurr bumble along in his stead.

Deceit as a tool of war and one Revan had employed many times. Viewing Deceit more as a feign in an attack, Revan saw no reason to question the honor behind such tactics and deliberately used any scenario to his advantage. It had kept him alive and in mostly one piece so it wasn't a tactic he would throw to the wayside.

_"Maybe I should have played dumb on Taris to Bastila and just walked away once we got to Dantooine instead of the mess it turned in to."  
_Absently rubbing his left hand over his abdomen where Carth had shot him, Revan glanced at Sarna as the Sith soldier adjusted her armor and checked her weapons. They were approaching Korriban at a speed meant for tactical insertions into war zones and to Revan, that was all Korriban really was. There were enough escape craft from the Republic fleet to form a sizeable resistance and Revan decided that misdirection would be necessary. The Republic obviously monitored Sith communications channels and the _Leviathan's_ outdated signals would have been picked up by any potential listener with a comms receiver and half a brain. The _Reclaimer_ was operating on a secret code shared by the Revanchist ships from Roon and Revan checked his own weapons out of habit before the stabilizers shifted as the transport came to a hard and quick stop and dropped down into the Valley of the Dark Lords.

Yuthura Ban frowned as she checked the logs from the _Leviathan_ a second time. Revan was supposed to show up at docking port 37-B in Dreshdae and that was supposed to be an hour ago. With a sigh, the Sith Academy Master clasped her hands together behind her back, waiting calmly for the Revanchist leader to make his appearance. A coded message to return to the Academy immediately drew Yuthura from the docking bay several moments later.

Unseen by the Sith Academy Master and the soldiers escorting her and acting as an honor guard for Revan, a Republic Soldier clad in slightly weathered combat armor cursed as he pulled his thumb from a detonator switch. The opportunity to assassinate Darth Revan had been missed and any potential damage that could have been done to the Sith on Korriban had been lost as well in the hopes that Revan's transport would land where it was supposed to. With a silent hand signal to a similarly-clad human the Republic soldier hefted an advanced sniper-rifle and moved with silent but quick steps towards a cliff-face overlooking the Sith Academy. If they couldn't get a shot at Revan, they'd take out the Academy Master.

Carth Onasi absently glanced over his shoulder as he walked through Dreshdae's streets. The small settlement was oddly quiet and the Republic Commander was at a loss to the reason. The answer came a moment later as bootsteps could be heard and Carth resisted the urge to dive for cover when a squad of silver-armored Sith soldiers rounded the corner with a gray-uniformed Dark Jedi at the head. The violet-skinned Twi'lek Sith didn't even glance at Carth as she passed, her face set in a frown as she pondered the reason Revan was calling her _from_ the Academy and not an orbiting ship or transport. There was also a lingering sense of danger in the Force and the Academy Master tried to center her anxieties and follow the thin tendril of the Force that told her to keep her hand on her weapon and her senses alert.

_"Hail the Evil Empire..."  
_Revan Qel-Droma mused to himself as he swept through the silent halls of the Sith Academy. Soldiers and students were gathered in the main hall and waiting for an announcement that was vital to their continued existence. The soldiers formed ranks, though they were at ease at that point while the Dark Jedi and students stood in varying states of unease, boredom and apathy. A complete and total lack of discipline was apparent in most of the students and Revan felt some disgust as he stalked into the main chamber of the Academy and watched through his mask as all heads turned to him.

"We have a problem."  
Revan began, stalking like a predator through the solid ranks the soldiers and students hastily formed at his appearance. Raking his eyes along the gathered handful, Revan counted only a few hundred soldiers and students. It wasn't enough to sustain the Sith Empire, let alone the Revanchists if they ever actively engaged the Sith and the Jedi and Revan stopped in front of a young boy who's features were vaguely familiar.

"Care to offer a guess?"  
Revan asked the boy, amused briefly at the flicker of fear in the boy's eyes. Swallowing, the Sith recruit tried to form a coherent sentence when faced with a Force-user who's skill was legendary amongst the Sith and simply something none of them could compare to.

"I- I don't know what you mean, Milord."  
Dustil Onasi answered, fuming internally at being singled out. All movement from the Dark Lord ceased and a heavy silence filled the halls while Darth Revan's mask fixed on Dustil.

"You don't know what I mean?"  
Revan's tone was amused, though an undercurrent of anger was clear to all present.

"Look at yourselves, gathered here in these ancient halls of knowledge. You turn against one another, revel in your own pathetic powers while your enemies watch you from afar, plotting your deaths. There is a platoon of Republic Special Forces soldiers in the wilderness around this Academy preparing an assault at this very moment yet you are all here at my whim, leaving this place unguarded. You- all of you are overconfident in your security. Simply following the leader of your Academy and saying you will follow me is not enough. I will not suffer fools in my army. Go out there into the wilds and kill those invaders. Immediately."  
Revan turned his attention from Dustil to the other Sith, raising his voice near the end so all could hear. Silence fell upon the gathered Sith and Revan clenched his hands into fists, snarling the next part.

"Get the Hell out of here and prove yourselves or I kill you where you stand!"  
Almost as one, the Sith immediately broke ranks and rushed out of the Academy, quickly forming search parties and strike teams to counter the threat of the Republic survivors. Crossing his arms over his chest, Revan remained inside the Academy, his eyes traveling to where Mission and Zalbaar were emerging from the bowels of the Academy. With the Academy mostly empty, Revan knew now was the opportune time for Carth or Kaera to make their passage. Something was keeping them on Korriban and if it wasn't the Starmap, Revan wanted to know what it was. You could never have too much information when fighting a war, especially one of subtlety and the former General nodded to Mission as the Twi'lek approached. Sarna was still at the transport, keeping an eye on the Republic signals the fleet had picked up and ready to call in a squadron of fighters if necessary while Revan went to the Academy to raise some Hell.

"Are you two going to make yourselves useful or do I need to offer you the same treatment?"  
Revan snarled at Mission, causing the young Twi'lek to flinch. Zalbaar growled under his breath, their rehearsed behavior painting a picture of reluctant servitude to a Dark Lord. Beneath his mask, Revan smirked when Mission nodded shakily to him and rushed away, the Wookiee following her and casting him a convincing glare over his shoulder. Seeing the Sith student he'd singled out following the two with his gaze and a thoughtful frown, Revan shook his head in apparent disgust, stalking away from the Academy and down into the quarters formerly held by Uthar Wynn.

The old Sith Academy Master had some interesting documents and artifacts that Revan wanted to sort through without prying eyes. Mission and Zalbaar would create any necessary distractions and Yuthura was likely outside the Academy and trying to regain a semblance of control over her underlings. Without opposition, Revan easily gained entrance into Uthar's quarters, unaware of the stealthed form watching him and following in his wake.

Few possessed a natural talent for stealth like the Cathar and with her Jedi training and a childhood filled with fleeing and terror and pain, Juhani was more than adept at her skills in concealing herself within a Stealth field generator and the Force. Even Mission wasn't as good as the Cathar and as she followed Revan's aura, disguising her own in his excess power, Juhani spotted her prey. Juhani didn't need a holo or Dak's help when she could smell Dustil from where she stood, hidden within the cloak of a stealth field. The boy had his father's scent and Juhani pondered the wisdom of confronting the boy when he was alone.

Dustil Onasi was following Mission and Zalbaar with his eyes, confused as to the presence of such an odd pairing and their connection with Darth Revan. With a glance in the direction Revan had gone in, Dustil followed after the Wookiee and Twi'lek, deciding a few questions as to the supposed new leader of the Sith of the Academy wouldn't be a bad idea.

Having tagged Dustil without putting Dak at risk for assisting, Juhani turned her attention to Revan, curious as to why he was so strict with Mission when it was completely unnecessary. During her time with the others on the _Ebon Hawk_, Juhani knew enough of Mission to know the girl adored Revan and thought of him as a friend.

_"Perhaps the man Revan is becoming is as much a bother to her as it was to me."  
_Remembering well the darkness she had sensed within Revan, Juhani saw how very meaningless her own fall had been. She had murdered only her torturer while Revan was responsible for the deaths of countless innocents. When she'd looked into his eyes in the Grove on Dantooine, she'd seen evil the likes of which she could not fathom. Revan's eyes held the answers to his actions and Juhani had seen in Revan's eyes a man who placed no value on life and a man who felt nothing over the horrors he'd unleashed upon the galaxy.

Had she not known of the good man he'd been when he'd saved her on Taris years before, Juhani would have felt compelled to attack Revan, for his good as well as that of the galaxy. Such remorseless killers could not walk the galaxy unopposed. They should certainly not be in positions of power and with a silent sigh, Juhani resolved to carry out her task.

She was there to appeal to the good in Revan, not scorn the evil. She had been a Jedi, but she had touched darkness. She knew of the crimes done by the Jedi Covenant and what the Jedi Council had done to Revan's mind and she was not going to betray what Revan had done for her when he'd saved her from Xor so many years ago. She would save him if she could, or die trying.

"Stealth field generators light up my mask's sensors like a bloody solar flare you know."  
Revan commented as he glanced up from the datapad he was perusing in Uthar's former quarters. He'd spotted Juhani as soon as she stepped into the room, but the Cathar was good enough in her stealth skills to have gotten into striking distance of him. Uneased slightly at that, Revan set the datapad down and crossed his arms as he gazed at the distortion his mask's heads-up-display was locked on. A sigh from the invisible Cathar drew a slightly curve to the edge of Revan's lips before it fell away. As much as he enjoyed being a cheeky bastard, it wasn't the time to get side-tracked. Juhani was stalking him for a reason.

"What do you want, Juhani?"  
Revan asked, his voice flat but holding a hint of wariness. Juhani had betrayed his trust by not informing him of Jolee Bindo's presence and while that was normally grounds for a prompt execution, Revan had saved Juhani's life twice and when one saves a life, one has to take responsibility for that life as well. Bastila had done as much for him and it was the least he could do for the young Cathar who he suspected was on her way back to the Jedi Order. She had killed Xor in anger, but such things weren't as unforgivable to Jedi as they were only a few short years ago. The Jedi were beginning to feel the end of the war and they were beginning to realize that they wouldn't survive it. Perhaps Malak's Sith wouldn't either, Revan hadn't decided anything concrete as of yet, but he was going to be killing a lot of people in the near future and Light or Dark, hero or not; Revan was finished watching from the sidelines as the war continued. Vima Sunrider had told him all that needed to be done in preparation for the True Sith had been done. That was enough for Revan.

"There is a student in this Academy that I wish to... arrange a meeting with."  
Disbelief crossed Revan's features but the effect was lost by his mask and Juhani shifted uncomfortable as a heavy silence descended between them.

"Dak Vessner. No, I don't think so, Juhani. You failed to inform me of your other Jedi companion and I've lost a valuable Fleet Commander as a result. I think I'll just go kill Dak. Do you want to watch?"  
Tossing the datapad he'd planned to read aside, Revan smirked at the horror on Juhani's face. Did she think he was completely ignorant of those he commanded? He'd sensed the connection between the Cathar and the Sith student and he'd show Juhani, indirectly the cost of betrayal. Plus Dak had pissed him off during their brief encounter.

"Master Ban? Have Dak Vessner killed. Immediately. Thank you."  
Flicking off his wrist-communicator, Revan turned his attention from the device to the horrified Cathar before him. With slow, practiced steps, Revan closed the distance between them, invading the Cathar's personal space as he leaned in and brought his mask inches from her gaping face.

"Twice I have saved your life. This is the last time, Juhani. Leave and never try to manipulate me again or I will have your head."  
Brushing past the Cathar, Revan ignored Uthar's belongings. There was nothing of vital importance in the former Academy Master's quarters and nothing that couldn't be replaced. The only thing of interest to Revan within the quarters had been a Sith Torture Mask that he had briefly pondered throwing over Juhani's head just to see what would happen. Cruelty was a weapon, a tool that Revan used as a means to an end and found no enjoyment in. Still, his curiosity would have been satisfied.

There hadn't been enough time to act to save Dak's life and Juhani shivered violently when she felt her connection with her friend vanish. A cold void grew in the Cathar's mind and she struggled to overcome the darkness that was rolling about like an enraged beast and crying out for blood. With a shuddering sigh, Juhani suppressed the urge to follow and try to kill Revan when the Force shifted slightly and her attention fell to the datapad Revan had carelessly tossed aside. Taking the device with a frown, Juhani's eyes widened at the information on it before she reactivated her Stealth Field Generator and sought out Carth's son. She'd managed to convince Carth to stay in Dreshdae, but she doubted it would last.

Yuthura Ban shrugged to herself as she considered the implications of the order passed on to her. Being the Master of the Academy in the wake of Uthar Wynn's swift end at Revan's hands, the former Twi'lek slave understood the necessity of following orders. Dak was one of the more competent of her students, but not the best and his loss would not be her loss. The Dark Jedi was so occupied with her own thoughts that she barely sensed the intent of the Republic sniper in time and a blasterbolt sped past Yuthura as she lunged to her side, rolling into a crouch and activating her lightsaber. Turning her head from side to side and not really looking with her eyes but her Force-enhanced senses, the Twi'lek deflected the sniper's second shot and cursed under her breath as she determined the angle of the attack and moved to the nearest cover which happened to be the Academy entrance itself. Yuthura nearly missed blocking a near-fatal shot when the doors to the Academy opened and Darth Revan emerged.

Clad in his black and red battle robes and armor, the Revanchist leader was the picture of the Dark Lord of the Sith he'd been over a year before. With casual, unhurried steps; Revan moved towards Yuthura, drawing the fire of the Republic snipers. Due to the alarm he'd raised within the Academy shortly before, the Sith soldiers and students scouring the surrounding wilderness around the Academy and Dreshdae quickly zeroed in on the sniper and Revan moved as if he knew precisely where the shots would head, not even dodging the three shots the Republic sniper was able to send towards him before being forced to concentrate on a threat to himself. Revan simply walked towards Yuthura, calmly shifting and allowing the blasterbolts to pass him by, the deadly bolts of energy missing him by scarcely an inch each time as he avoided them with a natural ease that stunned Yuthura. The way Revan avoided the blasterbolts was so natural, so instinctual that it left the Academy Master at a loss. Power like Revan's was rare and to see first-hand the Dark Lord of the Sith in action was simply astonishing.

"The alarm has already been raised, Yuthura. I need to see a log of all your students in the near future and preferably their files. The Revanchists can't accept just anyone into their ranks, regardless of how outnumbered we truly are. I'm sure you understand."  
Yuthura could only nod numbly, her eyes wide and fixed on the emotionless facade of Revan's mask. Without another word, Revan turned from Yuthura and returned to the Academy, a frown hidden beneath his mask as he glanced over his shoulder at the Twi'lek Sith instructor. He rarely flaunted his powers in the Force, rarely drew on them entirely but he'd done so in just then to avoid the sniper's shots. It was a ploy of course, to let Yuthura know exactly who she was dealing with but it all left a rather foul taste in the former Jedi Knight's mouth.

The Lightside of the Force only truly opened up to a Jedi when they surrendered themselves fully, allowing it to guide them without hesitation or doubt. A moment's doubt or a moment's lapse of concentration would break the flow of the Force and subsequently break the Jedi. Likely into many pieces if the artillery the Republic had just been shooting at him was any indication.

Sneering slightly at the errant thought of yet another nameless person getting a shot on him, Revan had allowed himself to tap in to the massive well of power he'd been born with and had used the Force to guide his actions. He never surrendered to the will of the Light anymore, nor did he embrace the Darkside. The Darkside offered power for power's sake. Like those who drew deeply on the Lightside of the Force, the Darkside required one to surrender to its will, to follow the raging flow of passion and emotion and while in the heat of melee that held your life in the balance would allow a Darksider to accomplish great and near-impossible feats there were devastating drawbacks. If the connection to those passions, if the sheer _rush_ of adrenaline was lost the connection would fail and the body would suffer withdrawal as if craving a drug and it was... very painful when one succumbed to the dangers of the Darkside.

The balance as Jedi called it, or a gray Jedi as some Sith did was a state of being so intuned with the Force that the user had near-endless power. His previous failings that led to grievous injuries were a result of an imbalance within that corrupted his unique hold on the Force and Revan walked through the silent halls of the Sith Academy with the frown on his face clearing to a decidedly neutral expression. A state of nothing, of neither the emotions or the _feelings _that Jedi received through the Force or the passions that fueled the Dark Jedi and Sith was quickly becoming a natural state of being to the Revanchist. It lacked the intoxicating high of the Dark and the unifying comfort of the Light. The Force merely felt like a cool blade in his mental hand, a tool and not a lifestyle for him to bend to his will.

_"Its as if I am free of its influence..."  
_Remembering his wish to fool the True Sith into believing him to be the Sith'ari and his own musings over such a fate, Revan felt no satisfaction at the result. The Force felt almost dead in the state his senses were in and while it was a mixed blessing, it offered him no comfort or distractions as the light and the dark respectively did. It _sucked_ as Mission would remark and Revan rolled his eyes at his mental degeneration. It was a good thing, yet it was also a terribly unnatural thing. The end result of a lifetime of training and two contrasting viewpoints on the same Force. He'd been a Jedi and a Sith, a hero and a villain and he'd fallen; quite recently into the middle.

_"Freedom from the flow of the Force."  
_With a mental shrug at the thoughts plaguing him, Revan relaxed his iron-hold on the Force. The last time he'd truly felt the influence of the Lightside of the Force was when he'd been training with Bastila on Manaan. The care of almost obsessive perfection he demanded of himself while _training _ the young woman who had saved his life required a focused connection to the Force and Revan's self-control had logically picked the light over the dark when dealing with Bastila. He had no intent to harm her and while she did intrigue him, the burning passion that had consumed him and driven him to madness during the Mandalorian wars had simply lost its fire. He had too much respect for Bastila Shan, felt too indebted to her to expose her to the dangers of the Darkside unrestrained. Such things had led many a great Sith to their tombs and the thought of his own tomb in the Valley of the Dark Lords was a depressing and all-together unsavory outcome to a life spent in the service of the _greater good._

Quite simply, Revan Qel-Droma wanted to live a life free of the flow of the Force and the influences of the galaxy, yet he chose to sacrifice such a life of anonymity to protect the galaxy from the True Sith. Jedi would fall and Sith would be redeemed in his war, their connections to the Force would become as corrupted as his own and they would become a new Order that would be neither Jedi nor Sith, yet both. The Gray Order was too cliche a title and with a disgusted scowl, Revan decided the Brotherhood of the Balance would be a terrible name as well for the new Order he was building. The Revanchists would have to do, egotistical though the name was. Revan had always seemed arrogant to the Jedi Masters but they had mistaken his confidence for such and the Mandalorian-raised former Jedi and Sith Lord never saw the importance of himself when it came down to it.

_"Who I am is not important... but my message is..."_

He'd said as much years before and he stood by the theory. A man was only as big as the ideals held to his name and Revan was all things in that regard. He had to be so in order to inspire so many to follow his cause and the Jedi Civil War had spawned plenty who saw no appeal in the Jedi Order or the Sith Empire; yet held the powers to make them successful in either Order. The flawed principle of the Sith and the Jedi's views on the Force was simply the distinction between black and white. There was no room for change in either Order and their teachings stifled those who would otherwise flourish if given leniency. The Jedi shunned the darkness and the Sith despised the light. They were both part of the same Force, two sides of the same credit-chip yet neither could abide the other.

A third Order dedicated to the pursuits of both divisions of the Force, to the state of balance Revan found himself in for the first time in his life was long overdue and Revan decided as he exited the Sith Academy and made his way to his transport to rejoin the fleet in orbit that the Revanchists should give the galaxy that option. The Jedi Covenant had proven how dangerous blind commitment to the Light could be and the Sith... well the dozens of dead worlds still smoldering in the ashes of their former inhabitants spoke for itself.

It all fell back to chess, really. Revan was neither a pawn nor even the king. Revan was the player, both players in fact. The light and the dark pieces moved against one another, manipulated by his commands and weakening one another and ignorant of anything but themselves and their foe. That singular focus that was in the heart of all Jedi and Sith who committed fully to their respective Orders would be all the opening he needed to lay waste to what remained. To break down the towers both sides had made and build from the rubble of both weakened Orders his own.

Suddenly bored with his singular focus on the Balance of the Force, Revan absently reached along the bond that had formed in his mind when Bastila Shan had saved his life. The distance between them was enough that actual words and thoughts could not pass between them unspoken, but Bastila had been strong in her own right and the power she had gained by tying her aura to his had given her the potential to be his equal. Twitching slightly at the thought of a foe he could neither vanquish nor fall to, Revan allowed himself a small smile as he pulled his thoughts from the subtle and blunt manipulations of those around him. Searching for emotions within himself, Revan opened the bond and passed on what the bond would allow.

Pushing his thoughts through the Force and the bond forged between a once Dark Lord of the Sith and a turned Jedi Padawan, Revan opened his mind to Bastila, sending what he could to the former Jedi.

In the Temple of the Ancients on Lehon, Bastila Shan's gray eyes snapped open, glazed slightly from her recent immersion into the Force. With bleary eyes, the former Jedi Padawan turned her eyes towards the Star Forge, calmly filing away the distance it had passed in the sky since she had began her meditation.

It had been several hours at least and the vibrant blue sky that had been present when she had slipped into the flowing tides of the Force and embraced the newly opened dark tendrils had darkened to a deep violet. In the distance, Rancor-beasts bellowed in outraged hunger, the Darkness recently awakened within the Force with Darth Revan and Darth Malak's arrival in the Rakatan system filling their primitive minds with an endless hunger brought forth by the corruption of nature and the balance long lost by the reawakening of the Star Forge and the Sith.

The Bond had filled with an unnamed emotion and the turned Jedi Padawan took in a steadying breath. Revan had tried to contact her, had sought her out through the Force and whatever the emotion had been, it was so distorted that she could not find the reason behind it. Still, it had comforted her tumulus thoughts slightly and reassured her that she was of some importance to Revan if he would seek to reassure her in such a way.

A flash of hatred crossed Bastila's deceptively soft features, marring the young woman's beautiful face into something harsh and ugly. Revan would avenge her fall, she knew. It was more than just revenge that drove Revan towards her and while she had recoiled weeks before from such thoughts, Bastila embraced the darkness within her and the power that came from it.

The torture of Malak would always leave its mark on her soul, tainting the light she had once held above all else and she turned her back on the Jedi teachings. She had seen enough of the flaws in the Jedi Code through Revan's thoughts and experiences and she would not be taken for a fool again.

Lifting her black cloak from a nearby crate and deciding that hunger had priority over meditation, Bastila moved from the rooftop of the Rakatan Temple, the bright sunlight of Rakata diminishing and finally disappearing entirely as the ambient lighting of the Temple's interior offered just enough light for a human to see their way by.

Drawn to the bowels of the Temple, Bastila secured her meal and lost herself to the currents of the Force once more, the thoughts Revan had sent through the bond compelling her to search the sublevel of the ancient structure. Years had passed since Revan Qel-Droma and Alec Squinquargesimus had first set foot in the cool and dark depths of the temple and Bastila could feel the lingering tendrils of the Force; the scars left in the Force by both men's passage through the temple and Bastila came upon an ancient puzzle, the glowing Rakatan glyphs tantalizing a memory sealed within the depths of her mind that was purely not her own.

Revan's memories had scalded her mind with their intensity and while many months had passed since the forming of the bond, burying the memories deep within her mind they were coming to the front when she saw the familiar yet alien surroundings.

Troubled slightly at the thought of her mind not being entirely her own, Bastila shivered and reaffirmed her actions on Dantooine when she had helped Revan evade capture by the Jedi Order. Despite her turn, the guilt had plagued her and even her fall had not freed her of the thought of how much damage Revan could do unrestrained. She had kept as close to him as she dared, seeing a greatness within the man, a destiny that couldn't be contained despite the interference of the Jedi Masters.

A familiar pattern played out over the glyphs and Bastila started as an ancient passageway opened suddenly, the stale air of the sublevel heavy in her lungs. Pressing on with a hand on her saberstaff, the newly appointed Apprentice to the Dark Lord of the Sith stepped into the undisturbed catacomb, her eyes settling upon an ancient and still active console.

Lowering her eyes to the ground, Bastila took in a deep and calming breath, resisting the urge to cough violently as the damp weight in the air assaulted her lungs. Even so a gasp overtook the young woman and she felt the Force shift subtly.

Revan had been in this place and more recently Malak. The console glowed in the darkness of the ancient catacomb and the bones of long-dead souls lay about, fossilized by the passing of thousands of years. Even so, the smell of rot was thick in the air and Bastila took hold of the Force, allowing it to shed proverbial light upon the mystery of her surroundings.

_"Subtle though my strategies may be. They all hinge upon a single event."_

On Korriban, Revan was sitting in the co-pilot's seat of the transport he had taken to the ancient Sith world, his thoughts diverted to the bond he shared with Bastila Shan. He'd passed along as many hints as he could to the young woman and Revan shifted uneasily. Malachor V had been the end of a long and sordid strategy that had hinged on his presence.

It had been a fantastic failure that had destroyed the Mandalorians as well as many of the less reliable soldiers that had been under his command. It had been left to a trusted General, the third in Command of the fleet and answerable only to Malak and himself that had been given the duty of using the superweapon.

Revan had instead been delayed from the battle and the massed Republic fleet had been divided when the full might of the Clans had descended upon the now shattered world.

Malachor V had been the last battle in the war, but Revan had planned the battle, had staged the war to weaken the Mandalorians enough that when he chose to draw them to Malachor that victory would at least be possible. Even with the Jedi that had followed him, the Mandalorians were worth ten, even a dozen Republic soldiers.

Dxun had been a strategy, a means to devastate the Mandalorian's numbers and while it had been costly to the Republic, the Republic's superior numbers had brought victory.

Dxun had been a world where many an inexperienced Republic recruits met their ends and massed armies of battle droids had become nothing more than molten slag. Even so, the world had been a good training ground. Hardened by the battles within the hellish jungles, the soldiers that stood at Malachor had been enough to match the Mandalorians. Or at least they should have been.

With a scowl, Revan pulled away from the thoughts of past failures and misplaced trust. It was a lesson for the future, not just a mistake and Revan pressed his lips together in a thin line. Doubts would only lead to hesitation and Revan had no intention of hesitating. He had the utmost trust in Bastila Shan and when she became more privy to the plan he had formed, he knew she would see the logic as well as the benefits in such an arrangement.

He could not doubt that for a second or Bastila would know and she would fail him as Taya Kenobi had over Malachor V.


	37. Chapter 36: Resistance

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"Revan was always confident in his plans, always committed fully to whatever strategy would be lain out before him. It was Revan's greatest weakness to trust that those under his command would follow through. He cost many their lives over Malachor V and after because of his confidence in the abilities of those beneath him. His faith in those weak fools was always misplaced. And it will be his downfall."~Darth Malak to... a window; mainly himself while pacing along the Star Forge's Observation Platform.~_

Chapter 36: Resistance

Mission Vao rolled her eyes as she walked into Dreshdae. Big Z was stalking through the Academy storage area for some food for the two of them and Revan... Revan was somewhere in orbit if the part of the strategy she was privy to was in the works and the Twi'lek frowned at the sense of someone watching her. Glancing over her shoulder, Mission spotted a Sith student approaching her directly and resisted the urge to calmly rush away to a more public area.

Un-intimidated, Mission crossed her arms and stared the approaching Sith down. Most of those within Dreshdae would cower in fear and awe of the Dark Jedi, but Mission had seen enough and been through enough to not be frightened. Or at least visibly frightened. After all, Revan had all but vouched for her and Zalbaar and the risk of angering the deposed Dark Lord would simply be fool-hearted.

No one ever accused an Onasi of doing something foolish, obviously.

Dustil Onasi cornered or at least though he cornered the Twi'lek that had been so obviously connected to Lord Revan. With a frown, Dustil noticed that the Twi'lek was not cowering as most would in the presence of a Dark Jedi and shrugged mentally. He wasn't really there to bask in the terror of weaklings, simply for answers. A _friend_ in close council with the new Dark Lord would be a good source of information. Information needed to insure his survival if the chill that had passed over him when Darth Revan had been in his face had been any indication.

"You got five seconds to explain why you're bothering me, bub."

Unsaid my the young Twi'lek was what would happen at the end of those five seconds. Clearly bluffing, Mission resisted the urge to flinch at the expressionless glare of the Dark Jedi.

"I have some questions for you, kid-"Mission cut off Dustil with a glare, raising her voice in outrage.

"Kid? Kid! Listen here, bub, you're not much older than me! If you didn't have the Force you'd probably be back home with your mommy and-"Mission grasped at her throat, her eyes widening as she realized taunting the Dark Jedi had been a bad idea.

"Never, _never_ speak of my mother. You don't know anything, little girl. The power of the Darkside has made me strong, made me-"Mission's savior came from an unexpected source that surprised both the Dark Jedi and the Twi'lek.

"Dustil? Dustil! No! What are you doing, let her go!"Flinching in shock, the Dark Jedi's Force-hold on Mission's throat fell away and he magnitude of his own stupidity as well as who was in front of him struck him. He'd just assaulted one of Darth Revan's companions despite the order _directly_ from the Dark Lord not to and despite the shock and rage he'd felt from his own actions and the Twi'lek's words, Dustil could see nothing but the man who'd interrupted what was likely going to be the reason for his death.

"Dad? What are you doing here?"Dustil asked in shock before it quickly dissolved to anger.

"You're spying, aren't you old man? After all this time, you finally show up and for what?"Stepping back and wordlessly thanking Carth, Mission looked between the two curiously, seeing the resemblance between father and son for the first time. Dustil sneered in disgust at his father.

"Couldn't you get yourself blown up on some ship and spared us this reunion?"

Carth slumped slightly in shock and grief, his eyes flickering as he stared at his son as if he'd never seen him before.

"Dustil... Wha- what are you talking about? I thought you were dead!"Dustil's sneer did not leave his face as he looked away from his father, spotting the wide-eyed look Mission was giving him.

"Too bad you didn't still think that. Or did you really think I'd be happy to see you?"The young man shook his head in disgust at the situation he found himself in.

"Look everyone! Its father! Come to rescue me at long last! Sure, he may have left mother and I to die on Telos, but that doesn't matter!"

Mission's heart almost broke at the look on Carth's face and the thought of lying to the man, even for Revan was unthinkable in that moment to her.

"Carth..."

Mission began, only to be completely ignored by the father and son."No, I didn't abandon you! The task force just arrived too late. Telos was in ruins, and your mother... I held her while..."

Carth shook off the memory, shuddering at the power of its pain before looking up into his son's eyes.

"But I looked for you I swear. I looked everywhere!"

Dustil shook his head, unwilling to listen any longer.

"Ah, save it. You abandoned us long before. We were alone all during the wars and even once you came back, you didn't stay!"

Remembering the fiasco with her brother, Mission sympathized with Dustil slightly, but she knew well enough how dedicated to the Republic Carth was and knew he wasn't the kind of man who could just stand aside and let the Sith sweep through the Republic unchallenged.

"I didn't have a choice! I was needed-"Carth's attempt to defend his actions was half-hearted at best and went ignored by his son.

"Yea? Well you were needed at home, too. You were needed when the bombing started and I got captured. You know what? It doesn't matter. Not any more. I have a new family now, a family that cares about me. I don't need you."

Anger replaced the grief in Carth's face as he looked at his son with shock.

"The Sith? You can't mean that! No, the Sith killed your mother! The Sith destroyed Telos!"Dustil, unwilling to listen to his father regardless of the truth in his words at that point shot back without hesitation the accusations that had been burning within him since his father had first gone off to war.

"So? You're the soldier, father. How many mothers have you killed?"Carth stared at Dustil, his anger leaving him as quickly as it had come and a look of pained understanding crossing his features.

"No, you've been brainwashed. The son I knew would never-"

Dustil wouldn't give up any ground though and dug in, using his words as a shield to hurt his father and vindicate his rage.

"You never knew me. You weren't even there to know me, so don't presume to tell me what I would and wouldn't do!"

A purely parental look crossed Carth's face, leaving it stern and saying silently that there would be no negotiations.

"I don't know what's been done to you, but you're coming with me out of here. Now."

Dustil's sneer had yet to leave his face, but it somehow became more pronounced at Carth's demand. Pulling back when his father reached for him, Dustil warned.

"Touch me, old man, and I'll kill you. Get out! Get out of here before I tell the Sith that you're here!"Dustil's eyes snapped sideways to stare at Mission, the sudden realization that the Twi'lek who knew Darth Revan also knew his father.

"How do you-"Dustil began, only to be cut off by a shadow moving out of the corner of his eye. Tensing, the Sith student prepared himself for an attack, uncertain what to expect when a young Cathar woman appeared, clad in a worn pair of auburn Jedi robes. The Cathar was watching his father with a thoughtful frown and Dustil tensed, uncertain of what he wanted to do.

Darth Revan calmly relaxed back into his co-pilot's seat on the transport he had taken from Korriban's surface. Beside him, Junior Officer First-class Sarna was expertly flying the transport through the upper layers of Korriban's atmosphere. The edge of the transport's shield flared slightly against the friction of the thin air molecules and an orange flame burned against the viewport. Staring at the fire flickering against the transparisteel, Revan felt a flickering of the Force near where he could vaguely sense Mission. Being nearly off the planet, Revan could not sense the danger that the Twi'lek had briefly been in, only the gathering of the Force in her general area. It wasn't an exact science and most of what was going on just outside of Dreshdae was going over Revan's head.

He still had the insight though, to sense that something had happened to throw a hydrospanner into his plans and with a scowl the Dark Lord glanced over to Sarna.

"Open a signal to the Academy. I need to speak with Yuthura."

Sarna nodded wordlessly, setting the shuttle's autopilot before opening a secured channel to Yuthura Ban. Revan's conversation with the Academy's head was short and to the point.

"Yuthura. Chose the most competent of that rabble Uthar left you and take whatever is necessary with you. We're relocating to a secured location. If we linger on Korriban any longer Malak or the Republic will come and those are fights that we cannot win. Divided as we are now, at least."

Yuthura frowned as she looked down at her communicator, her hesitation broadcasting slightly in the Force. Revan said nothing to the hesitation, uncertain himself over Malak's strategy. Alec would have struck back immediately, but Darth Malak proved his self unpredictable when he fired on the _Revenge_ and betrayed Revan. Malak could wait, build up a fleet the likes of which the galaxy had never seen before and destroy any and all opposition by sheer numbers. Of course, such a massive fleet could not be sustained indefinitely. It was part of the reason Revan had not sought to destroy the Republic's infrastructure during his reign as Dark Lord.

A battleship wouldn't run without fuel. A blaster wouldn't fire without a charge and soldiers wouldn't fight effectively when they were starving. The droids would last for a time, but droids lacked something normal sentient beings possessed; common sense. A droid would analyze logically and operate within their mission parameters. It was inflexible and any military commander knew a strategy never survived the first encounter with an enemy. The ability of normal sentients to adapt was a necessity on the battlefield and could simply not be programmed into a droid.

Even HK-47 lacked something that an untrained child possessed and Revan twitched slightly at the thought. Droids could be reprogrammed, have their memories erased and become entirely different machines. What did that say about sentients, specifically him when the Jedi could do the same?

Paranoid at his train of thoughts, Revan examined his memories for the... well; he'd done it many times before. Starting with the scars running across his body, Revan unconsciously traced them and the painful memories of how they'd come to be. Pain was something that could be implanted in the mind as well as fear, but the cold sense of surprise each wound brought couldn't simply be explained through words.

"_They tried to make me an invalid. A weak and mindless drone… A slave..."_Opening his eyes slowly, Revan ignored the sidelong glance he knew Sarna was sending him, fixing his gaze towards the small fleet he had to show for his betrayal of the Jedi Order and the Republic.

It wasn't enough.

Expressionless, the former Jedi drew in a steady, cool breath and exhaled it slowly, recalling his brief encounter with Vima Sunrider's ghost. That had been a sordid affair, of that there was no doubt. To see what was left, lifeless and empty in the wake of his descent into darkness had clarified things he had overlooked… Things he had misinterpreted, crimes he had not seen as such and with the brush of a finger across the base of his mask, Revan traced his thoughts as well as the edge of the Mandalorian metal as he considered all he had taken from the galaxy and what it had gained from him in the process.

It simply wasn't enough.

He'd damned himself long before he'd taken to the teachings of the Darkside. He'd fallen long before Malachor V and the scars those events, those altering atrocities left upon him and the worlds he'd burned were well in excess of what he'd set out to do in the first place.

He'd meant to make the Republic, the Galaxy strong, but he'd sown the seeds of mistrust. Questioning the established ruling body of the Jedi Order had been endlessly frustrating and at the same time satisfying, but Revan Qel-Droma could not abide the corruption and pain that had swept the galaxy during the Mandalorian wars.

Revan and many of the Jedi that had followed him had been pushed past their limits and crossed over the edge of their own sanity. The Jedi training had failed them in war, leaving only the ravages of hatred, despair and fear.

"Sarna."Revan stated blandly; his voice a low, dull beat that caused the Junior Officer to jerk in surprise, her fingers nearly brushing the controls that would have sent the transport into a short and lethal dive back to Korriban's surface. Recovering quickly from her surprise at being addressed so suddenly, Sarna activated the autopilot and turned to see the masked Revanchist leader staring out at the _Reclaimer_, his visor catching a hint of Korriban's star as he tilted his head slightly, the bones of his neck popping audibly. Grunting in discomfort and annoyance at the weariness of his body, Revan clenched his left hand into a fist, the leather of his black gloves creaking quietly.

"How would you like a promotion?"Revan turned his mask to the young woman, his amused smirk hidden beneath his mask. Frowning in confusion, Sarna turned back to the controls, retaking command of the transport and guiding it towards the Interdictor that had been named the head of the Revanchist fleet. Dwelling on the question for several silent moments, Sarna finally came up with an answer she found acceptable, one that came from her own beliefs.

"I do not think I would, Milord."The Junior Officer stated cooly, a miniscule flinch crossing her eyes when Revan turned away from studying her and watched the approaching bay of the _Reclaimer_.

"Why, pray tell, would that be?"Revan asked calmly, his fingers brushing the base of his mask as he probed the Force. Sarna swallowed the lump in her throat at the emotionless and dead tone Revan's voice held, her eyes flickering between the controls and her peripherals.

"I am not qualified for anything more, Milord. Promoting me would be favoritism and it is both irresponsible and dangerous."The transport had landed by the time the Sith soldier had spoken and Revan stood slowly, absently brushing his hand over Sarna's shoulder as he moved from the seat and made his way across the cockpit.

"Loyalty isn't something that can be forced upon someone, nor is wisdom it seems. You are both, and your inexperience in the way I fight a war has nothing to do with my offer. I need someone who is both loyal to me as well as someone who can think for themselves. It is foolish to orchestrate an entire war by myself. All I require of you is that you are loyal and have a brain between your ears."

Activating the craft's auto-cool down for a post-flight, Sarna quickly locked the controls and stood to face Revan, her brown eyes narrowed in confusion.

"What would you ask of me, Milord?"

Sarna asked quietly, her stance straightening at the military tone Revan's voice adopted.

"You are being promoted to Lieutenant First Class for starters. What I need from you is simple, really. Find others willing enough, loyal enough or stupid enough to throw themselves between danger and myself. Once you are certain of their loyalty, we will secure the full support of Yuthura Ban by... liberating some slave camps on Sleheyron. You will find that many of the Revanchists are former slaves. I find that freeing one of a life of servitude tends to make them grateful and... ironically shifts their focus from pleasing their masters to pleasing their liberator."Revan's tone was detached, but at the same time almost condescending. It was as if the concept of servitude to one such as he was so contemptuous and so alien that it could only be a joke. Uneasy, Sarna merely saluted and gave her affirmation with a simple and toneless.

"Yes, Milord."

His face expressionless beneath his mask, Darth Revan turned and left the transport, waving away the honor guard aboard the capitol ship that escorted him to the bridge where the next few hours were spent preparing to evacuate the newly-turned Sith forces on Korriban.

The Revanchists were on the move, and so too were the JedI and Sith. To linger and plot in such an obvious place would be a fool's errand and Revan was many things, but a fool he was not.

AN: Sorry for the delay. Got injured pretty badly back in late February/March and my old CPU got a virus (Bastards) Haven't had the means/time/energy to type and I know this chapter falls short for such a long delay, but I plan to get back to a more reasonable rate now that I'm figuratively back on my feet.


	38. Chapter 37: Maneuvers

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

"_Hurry up and wait. That is what they tell you back in basic. You hurry to where the enemy will be and you wait. Sometimes you only wait for scarce moments before you see the enemy or it can be days… weeks… even months. War isn't fast, it isn't cheap and it isn't ever easy. Don't forget that, son. Don't forget what it can cost you."_

_~Commander Carth Onasi to Dustil Onasi during the Revanchist evacuation of Korriban~_

Chapter 37: Maneuvers

Sleheyron wasn't much to look at. Like most Hutt worlds the natural beauty of the planet was all but gone, replaced with machinery, industrial waste and the filth of the massive aliens that controlled the populations of their worlds through vice, terror and pain. When, by galactic standards; a small fleet appeared from hyperspace, little was done immediately. Several of the smaller, less associated smuggling craft tried to initiate their hyper drives, only to find that the small, twelve-ship strike force descending upon them was equipped with Interdictor cruisers.

Panic immediately followed as thousands of small transports and freighters tried to escape the approaching Sith capitol ships. Flashes filled the space around Sleheyron as dozens of other ships appeared, all forming a sphere of nearly two hundred Capitol ships, their hulls painted a terrifying blood red and black that seemed to match the backdrop of space.

The Revanchists had come to Sleheyron and on the bridge of the _Leviathan_; Yuthura Ban inhaled deeply, her body tense and nearly trembling at the sight of the world that had enslaved her body and soul for so long. A general order was passed through the fleet and the Twi'lek Dark Jedi smiled grimly as Revan Qel-Droma's voice filled the ears of every Revanchist, Sith defector, Hutt, smuggler and slaver in the system.

"This is Darth Revan. Your system is now under the control of the Revanchists. Any resistance will be met with lethal force. Surrender your cargoes, your crews and yourselves and prepare to be judged for your crimes."A cheer rose up from the Revanchists, unheard over the vacuum of space as the only response was only chaos. Dozens of ships collided with one another in an attempt to escape while smugglers dumped their cargoes, living or not to try to hide their crimes.

Advanced sensors from the Sith ships catalogued each ship's identity and their cargoes before the panic had taken hold and Revan watched with a grim line to his lips as many of the life signs present in the system vanished abruptly.

"Revan to all ships, launch fighters to intercept all vessels. Disable only. Let the scum meet their ends at out blades, not our guns."Affirmations were broadcast from thousands of Sith fighters as the small, nimble craft shot from the fleet and launched ion-based charges at the fleeing and resisting freighters and transports.

Hours passed before the blasts filling the space around Sleheyron died down and the net of Revanchist ships closed tightly over the Hutt world, the Revanchist leader standing on the bridge of the flagship as he eyed the world's decaying surface critically.

Tibanna gas was produced in vast amounts on Sleheyron and if the Revanchists were to continue operating their weapons and ships, fuel was needed for the engines and weapons As a renewable resource, excreted from imported Beldon from Bespin, the state of Sleheyron's natural environment was not too dire for Revan to worry over the matter.

Everything Revan Qel-Droma needed to fight a war was on Sleheyron and the Hutt-controlled forces that moved to protect the mining platforms were sign enough that Revan did not have to worry about sabotage. The Hutts thought only of profit and there was no profit in fighting a war themselves. The defenders would be well-trained and likely equipped better than most of the Sith.

It was that reason that Revan was sending the Dark Jedi and the Elite Revanchist forces to secure the platforms.

"Begin maneuvers for planetary assault. You all have your targets, good hunting."

The space around Sleheyron was dead aside from the Revanchist fleet. Packs of Sith fighters hovered in stationary patterns as they kept the disabled smuggling and slaving craft under their guns, prepared to end the battle for those crews swiftly should the order come.

"Milord, the Hutt clan-leader is again attempting to contact us. He demands to know why the Sith are assaulting Hutt space and promises swift retribution."

Revan sneered briefly before the flash of an emotion passed and he merely waved away the communications officer's report. He wasn't running or interested in negotiating. The Hutts were strong when united, but they'd devolved into feuding clans since the Mandalorian Wars and without a strong threat, they would not be a threat.

"_Within a few short weeks the Hutts will be nothing more than refugees, fleeing my empire like the cowards they are."_Despite the political backlash of attacking the Hutts, which Revan did not care about, there was the underworld element to consider. The Exchange and the Genoharadin would likely start sending assassins to eliminate him, but that would be nothing new and Revan allowed himself a small smirk as he watched his forces take the tibanna mining platforms one by one, the highly-skilled and highly trained former Sith overcoming the Hutt's mercenaries with professional expedience.

There were casualties, yes, but it was a small price to pay for what was to be gained. A silent signal passed from each platform as the Revanchist special forces units took them and small gunboats and corvettes from the Revanchist fleet moved ahead to protect the captured assets while the heavier Interdictors targeted the planet's defense grid.

"Knock out their power first. I want as much chaos as possible. When the dust clears, pick your targets and eliminate anything that even points in our direction."

Orchestrating an invasion verbally over a communications network was not precisely what Revan was doing. Each ship's commanding officer had a sealed and hand-delivered packet of the battle plan and Revan was merely following the strategy he'd planned out days before verbally to coordinate better between the fleet.

It went off without a hitch and that was when Revan began to worry. As if summoned by his dark thoughts, a small group of heavily armed ships broke from the surface of Sleheyron, red-lining their engines as they tried desperately to escape.

"Please tell me those are the slugs running away."Revan muttered, his arms crossing over his chest as he watched the ships fall from the sky, crashing down to Sleheyron's surface as Ion-cannons mounted on the Interdictors took them out of the sky.

"Hostile ships have been disabled. Shall we send a retrieval squad?"Revan pondered the situation for a moment before nodding and ordering a legion of regular Sith infantry into the field. While not as well-trained, the Revanchists had plenty of grunts willing to fight and it was the drive to free those crushed beneath the corruption of the Hutts that gave the Revanchists something to strive for. Something more than galactic domination.

Of course, Revan still wanted to hold dominion over the Republic and Sith Empire, but he knew it would be a long and complicated road to travel when the resources of the Star Forge were to intangible.

"_Mission had better come through. For her own good. Bastila will rip the message I implanted in the girl's mind out easily enough and cooperation will ensure her continued survival."_

Brushing his left hand over the base of his mask, Revan ran his fingers over the Mandalorian metal thoughtfully. Carth and Kaera were too predictable. They'd call in everything the Republic had to take the Star Forge and Malak would do the same to defend his prize.

The battle would hinge not upon who had more soldiers or ships or who was better trained. The fate of the Republic and the Sith Empires would rest in Bastila Shan's hands and Revan closed his eyes briefly, reaching deeply into the Force as it flowed with him, pressing deeply into his mind and feeling the connection he shared with the young woman.

Bastila was closer now and Revan sent a calming reassurance to the former Jedi Padawan that could have been mistaken for comfort, thought Bastila would know precisely what it was.

Awakening with a start, Bastila Shan, Sith apprentice of Darth Malak gasped as she hastily checked her surroundings. An alien feeling had pressed upon her mind and while she should have felt violated, the sensation had warmed her cold heart briefly.

Revan had opened his mind to her, had brought himself close enough to her so that they could share their feelings and with an excited sigh, Bastila melted into the comfort of Revan's mind. It had once been a dark and terrifying place, filled with nightmares and torments that now seemed so trivial.

Bastila had survived the tortures of the Sith and had come out stronger than ever and the Dark Lady of the Sith allowed a cold, cruel smile to grace her lips as she returned Revan's message with one of her own, one that reciprocated the mutual necessity and respect they had developed in their travels together.

She might have called it love, if it had not felt so formal in Revan's thoughts. It was more respect than passion, more an acknowledgement than adoration. Bastila had forgotten love in her years as a Jedi, but she knew what she felt for Revan and what he had felt for her was as close as she would ever get to the emotion, as close as she wished to be.

Revan had saved her mother, had given her family peace by recovering her father's remains and his holocron and no matter how deeply Malak's tortures had twisted her, Bastila knew Revan did not do such things out of selfishness or a means of tricking her.

Revan had genuinely felt the need to honor the man who had brought her into the galaxy and the woman who had carried her within her womb. Family had meant everything to Bastila as a child and she had clung to that shred of light, to that glimpse of love and normalcy and family and had felt a primal, almost overwhelming need to share that with Revan. To know that Revan did not want her as an apprentice but as an equal, as a partner in all things had filled Bastila with what had been stolen from her by the Jedi and the Sith.

She loved him, even if he was unaware of love himself. Even if he was incapable of feeling it as deeply as she, Bastila knew Revan held an affection and attraction for her that would not be tainted by lust or greed or power. Revan would come, and Bastila would give the Empire of the Sith back to its rightful leader before taking her place at his side, as his equal, his partner, his lover and his Empress.

Doubts were crushed swiftly when they surfaced, the connection with Revan's mind filling Bastila with the certainty that had driven Revan's trust for her. Their bond allowed them to see the truth of the other's thoughts and feelings and Bastila knew with absolute certainty what was required of her and she would not hesitate when the time came.

Days had passed since the siege of Sleheyron had begun and the Revanchists had risen victorious if not a little bloodied from the encounter. Several Dark Jedi and special forces units had been slain along with the gunboat protecting their mining platform when a ground emplacement had fired upon the captured station and the wreckage and bodies of Sith fighters and soldiers floated in space or lay in the streets of the former Hutt world as slaves were brought from the captured ships in orbit and the mines, shipyards and hovels covering the industrial world's surface.

On every monitor in the system, across every communications grid on the planet, Darth Revan spoke to the slaves, offering them a dream that few of the weary and downtrodden masses even hoped to believe.

"You are free of your servitude to the Hutts. I leave the fate of your former masters and slave drivers in your hands… at least those that survived your liberation. I welcome you all to join the Revanchist cause. Should you chose to fight you will be provided with armor, weapons and the training and food needed to become a soldier in my army. Should you choose to remain here and work, you will be provided food and payment for your service. Your lives are yours and I ask nothing of you except that you remember the tyranny you suffered here. Such filth cannot be allowed to exist and I ask that you not contribute further. Chose your path, for you are all free and masters of your own fate."It was short for a speech, but Revan did not wish to get long-winded. There was little to be said to those freed except what had already passed through his lips. They would make their own choices and hopefully it would not interfere with his plans for the galaxy.

Meeting with the ship's commanders and a dozen Dark Jedi and Special Forces soldiers, Revan decided to leave the system under the control of Yuthura Ban. The former slave would see that justice was served and would not allow the system and world to degenerate into the cesspool of crime, torment and evil that it had been.

Nothing so noble drove Revan, though. To him, slavery was a weakness. Forcing others to do the work for you made one lazy and unskilled. It offered little rewards aside from simple vices that he had long ago denied himself. Revan liberated Sleheyron simply due to the world's combination of resources. Former slaves made excellent soldiers and workers when they felt they owed it to their liberator or they were given the freedom to choose. Revan cared little for the Hutts anyways and soon the former Jedi Knight and deposed Dark Lord of the Sith would unite the Revanchist stronghold of Roon with the nearby Hutt-controlled systems as the fleet liberated world after world.

So long as the former slaves were treated in a reasonable manner, Revan knew his plan would work to his advantage. With the ability to unite the Hutt system's resources without the corruption of the Hutts interfering, the Revanchists would soon be a power to be reckoned with.

"Milord, a moment."Revan turned to see a Sephi man approaching him. The man was tall and graceful as most of the eleven-like sentients were and his blonde hair was pale white in some parts, telling of his advanced age. It would not have surprised the Revanchist if the man was a veteran of Freedon Nadd's war centuries before.

"May I help you?"Revan asked. The Sephi paused and stared for a long moment into the slit in Revan's faceless mask before he spoke, his voice as calm and collected as a Jedi's.

"My name is Tarak Val'kar. I was a Jedi learner centuries ago before I fell in love with another of my kind and chose a life on Bandomeer."

Already bored with the man, Revan crossed his arms impatiently and fell back on Jedi training to maintain his calm. It wouldn't do to kill a man on the streets just for having a conversation with him that bored him.

"I am sorry, Mister Val'kar, but I am needed on my flagship within the hour, would you mind getting to the point?"Pausing with uncertainty, the Sephi lowered his head a moment before raising his green eyes to meet Revan's faceless mask once more.

"The Genoharadin do not appreciate interlopers."

The sense of danger within the Force strangely didn't come and Revan frowned at the Sephi, reading deeply into the man's aura before realizing it was not a threat, but a warning.

"I thank you for your concern, Tarak. I will be wary."

Tarak shook his head, his eyes flashing in concerned annoyance.

"You do not understand, Milord. I offer my skills to your cause. You freed not only I, but my daughter from a life of horror and I can think of nothing else I can do to honor you. I- I was once a member of the Genoharadin in my reckless youth and I know how they operate. Allow me to serve you… allow my daughter to serve you. I ask you, one man to another. Let us repay our debt to you."Revan felt a flash of shame for his earlier impatience and frowned as the Sephi knelt before him.

"No debt is owed. You show yourself to be an honorable man and I say go home and care for your daughter-"The Sephi smirked, laughing lightly at Revan and shook his head, continuing to kneel before the Revanchist.

"My daughter is a grown woman, Milord. Before you turn us away so quickly, allow us a chance to bring justice to the galaxy."

Revan felt the Force shifting and turned to see a Sephi woman with light red hair and pale green eyes that matched Tarak's approaching him. The Force was certainly strong with the girl and Revan frowned as he considered the pair.

"Fair enough. Welcome to the Revanchists."Revan offered his hand to the man, pulling him to his feet while offering a slight nod of greeting to the man's daughter.

"What is your name, my dear?"Revan asked as he turned and made his way to his transport. The Sephi turned to her father, raising a brow before answering when her father offered a small nod, his fingers brushing against a concealed hilt in his waist-line.

"Aleco, for my mother."Aleco Stusea was the only Sephi Revan knew with that name and the Dark Lord blinked in momentary confusion before he turned, light saber in hand to deflect Tarak's strike. Taking the Sephi man's weapon-hand, Revan replaced his light saber to his belt, staring down at the man as he groaned in pain, holding the stump of his ruined hand while his daughter looked on with a frightened and agonized expression.

"A mistake to make this personal, Tarak."

Revan stated, using the Force to strangle the life out of the Sephi while his daughter watched on in horror. Feeling nothing for the execution once the Force took Tarak, Revan turned to the man's daughter.

"War took your mother and Revenge your father. Should you choose such a destructive path your end will be no different. I am the Lord of Revenge and should not be approached lightly. I am not one to be given Revenge so much as I am one to deal it out. Had I wanted your father to truly suffer it would have been you to die first."

Without waiting for a response, Revan used the Force to sever the vertebrae in Aleco Val'kar's neck. The Sephi woman joined her father in the Force and the Dark Lord stared down at the pair of corpses for a moment before turning and continuing on to his transport.

It was unfortunate to lose two potential Dark Jedi, but a vendetta such as the one the pair would have given him would hardly be worth the trouble. Before reaching his transport, Revan was again accosted, though this time by a Sith soldier in silver armor.

Even though the soldier was interrupting Revan's train of thought, the deposed Dark Lord welcomed the intrusion from the unwelcome hint of guilt that tried to fight its way to his conscious mind.

"What is it, soldier?"Revan asked calmly, offering a salute to the Sith as he gave one to Revan. The soldier paused at the gesture before voicing his purpose.

"Milord there was a smuggling vessel on its way to Nal Hutta transporting some spice and other contraband. The crew was interrogated and one claims to know you. She says her name is Taya Kenobi and she wants to know what the Hell is going on."Revan Qel-Droma's mind derailed momentarily in surprise at the familiar name. Taya had been a passable General and a decent strategist. She'd have made a fine Sith had she not lost her powers over Malachor V and Revan considered his options. Taya often relied on the Force when finalizing her battle plans, but her tactical mind was sound and she would make a reliable officer within the Revanchist ranks, should the exiled former Jedi General prove trustworthy.

Smirking at the prospect of seeing an old comrade again, one that knew Alec almost as well as he did and would likely feel the sting of betrayal and pain just as harshly, Revan gave the soldier an order for the smuggling ship, the crew and Taya to be brought to the _Reclaimer_ before he boarded his transport and made his way to the flagship.

Sleheyron had proven to be a wise decision and the Lord of Revenge allowed his mind to drift to the possibilities once he recovered Bastila from Rakata Prime. Everything was going according to plan and unless Carth and Kaera were successful on Rakata and defeated Bastila, Revan had nothing to worry about.

Well, nothing until the True Sith got bored waiting around the Unknown Regions and finally attacked.


	39. Chapter 38: Crossed Paths

_Disclaimer: I own nothing._

"_Revan Qel-Droma of the Bloodraven Clan. It's ironic that one we trained to be a great leader within our ranks was tainted by the blood of two of our greatest adversaries. A fallen Jedi and Sith Lord and a Mandalorian warrior who's entire life, who's very existence is so different from our own. We were fools to train one such as him. Even if it was the will of the Force. Darth Revan was born to be an enemy of the Jedi and I fear our arrogance, our mistakes in his training will be the end of us all."_

_~Jedi Master Vrook Lamar shortly before the Battle of the Star Forge~_

Chapter 38: Crossed Paths

Whatever she had expected when she saw him, Taya Kenobi had never thought the term small would have come to mind. She had known him years ago as simply Revan; later the Revanchist, but always Revan. Others would call him General Bloodraven or Lord Qel-Droma, but the names had never really fit the man.

Even so, when she set eyes upon him he seemed smaller, less the legend that she had come to know him as and merely a man. A man weighed down by two genocides against his own people. The first against those that carried him through early childhood and the second on those that took him in through his adolescence.

Darth Revan. That was what he had called himself and had she been as well-informed as the rest of the galaxy seemed to be, Taya Kenobi would never have let her captain call in his favor for letting her on the crew after the Mandalorian wars.

It wasn't the man's power that was smaller, not his body. The elaborate armor and robes that Revan had adopted late in the Mandalorian wars rested on a powerful frame, a body conditioned, trained and forced into being a weapon.

The Force was lost to Taya though and without the overwhelming aura that always touched her mind when she looked at Revan, he seemed smaller somehow, as if the power she knew he possessed was as gone as hers. It was a deceiving thought and one that the Exiled Jedi Knight pushed from her thoughts as soon as it had come. It still festered though, drawing a frown to her lips as soon as the man she had one looked upon as a brother entered the hangar bay where her ship, crew and her very existence would be decided.

"I saw what happened on Manaan, Revan..."

Taya began quietly; unable to think of anything but the last moment she had seen him, even if it was a holo-recording. She had thought he was dead after seeing Nomi Sunrider's blade skewer him and even now, but a few short weeks later the fact that the masked and armored figure before her was so undeterred by the grievous injuries inflicted upon him by the Jedi; that he was so... healthy seemed to mock her own plight.

They had all been criminals to the Jedi Order by the time the Mandalorian wars had been joined and Revan had fared much better than she in the half decade since her banishment from the Jedi Order and the disappearance of Revan and Malak.

"Dreadful business, that."Revan said calmly and Taya was unsurprised to hear the clipped, cultured accent he'd cultivated on Coruscant had faded to a rougher, deeper baritone that had lost any hints of warmth and, strangely enough; arrogance. Not that Revan had ever been arrogant, he had merely been too confident. Dangerously so at times and it could have been mistaken for arrogance if Revan had ever felt anything so simple.

The Force was so strong with Revan that it had opened pathways most of the Jedi could only dream of and his battle strategies were near-prophetic. It had been the cause of the rift in their friendship when she had learned that Revan had planned all of the losses their forces suffered during the Mandalorian onslaught. That Revan had taken into account the sacrifices needed to defeat Mandalore and had not only deemed it necessary, but also acceptable.

Taya had been cursed with caring too much for the men and women under her command and while she knew Revan had felt a responsibility to those that followed his commands and he did everything within his power to minimize the losses they suffered and even took up his own blade and fought alongside them... Something was always missing in Revan's dark eyes. A soul perhaps, she couldn't say for certain. His aura was too powerful for him to lack any kind of essence, but even so the numb nothingness she felt when she touched his thoughts near the end of the wars had driven a blade between them and one which neither seemed prepared to remove.

"What happened to you? What happened to Alec?"

Two burning questions that held the same answer. It was all Taya could think to say after the awkward greeting between them. Revan was as calm as ever, casually brushing aside his near-death and Taya was growing angry at the casual disregard that Revan viewed all things through. He had friends, followers and soldiers that he had an obligation to and yet he turned his back on her, on them in the thankless campaign to stop Mandalore the Ultimate.

Victory over Mandalore had been achieved, but it was a hollow victory and without the Force, Taya Kenobi felt as if she had died over Malachor V with most of her forces, she felt like one of those billions of corpses littering that battlefield, trapped in the crushing gravity of the Mass Shadow Generator and the collapsing hull of the _Ravager _or ten thousand other ships.

"We rearranged our priorities. Set out to teach the galaxy the folly of weakness and cowardice and then... well we decided to maim one another... I'm still trying to wrap my mind around which of us gave the best blows in the end..."

Confused, Taya narrowed her blue-green eyes at the specter before her, refusing to look away from the faceless mask he's taken from the ruins of Cathar nearly a decade ago.

"Have you taken leave of your senses, Revan?"The Revanchist Sith gathered in the hangar all tensed as Revan's movements stilled. The deposed Dark Lord had been pacing slowly as he spoke to Taya, casually observing her ship while the crew was held some distance away on the other side of the hangar.

"Kill her crew, immediately."

Revan ordered, turning on his heel and walking away. Taya spend one horrified second registering what Revan had said before her crew was executed by the Sith guarding them. An iron weight suddenly smashed upon the former Jedi and she was dragged bodily across the hangar by an invisible hand, the faintest of gestures from Revan's left hand showing the source of the Force-grip.

"What- Revan! What have you done! Stop this!"

Acting as if he did not hear the pleas of his once-friend and General, Revan continued on; dragging the feebly struggling Jedi as she raged vocally against his hold.

Taya wasn't certain what had happened, but the moment she'd asked if Revan had lost his mind; she had read his body language. The tense stillness that had descended upon the man had been one she had only seen once before. It had been on Cathar, when the Masters were trying to get them to leave the thoughts of war with the Mandalorians behind. Revan had knelt to the ground and picked up a Mandalorian mask, one she had discovered was worn by Clan-members of the Bloodravens.

She'd speculated on Revan losing his mind near the end of the war with how some of his strategies and tactics ended up. Aside from the necessity of it, Revan seemed to enjoy the challenge of the battles he fought against Mandalore and his strategist Cassus Fett and the cold efficiency that he slew Mandalorian warriors was humbling while at the same time disturbing.

Some claimed Revan grew to love war as the Mandalorians had, accusing the Revanchist of forcing a stalemate on Dxun and Althir to drag out the war. Anyone with a tactical mind would have seen the truth of the matter, seen that Revan was draining the Mandalorian's resources, but there was always the doubt that Revan could handle what he was seeing.

He had only been twenty when he'd joined the Mandalorian War effort and now, not even a decade later, Revan Qel-Droma was again waging what seemed a thankless, pointless campaign.

Slamming into the unforgiving and unmoving wall of a cell, Taya groaned in pain as she struggled to turn and see Revan. Through half-closed and dazed eyes, the former Jedi General watched as a Mandalorian wearing Mandalore's mask approached the Dark Lord, only sparing a short glance in her direction before the two began speaking.

"Just got word from out scouts that the Republic hit Korriban after we left. They pulled a few survivors from the surface if reports are accurate but luckily none of those Republic panty-wastes had the balls to infiltrate the Academy and they don't know where we went."

Taya saw Revan nod to the Mandalorian's report and felt a sudden dread replace the anger and confusion she felt at Revan. Had the Mandalorians he chased to the Outer Rim joined with him and returned to wage a new war against the galaxy?

"Revan you can't trust them! All they want is battle, you know this."

Despite a deep-seated hatred of the Mandalorians, Taya Kenobi had retained the detestable thought processes of a Jedi, despite being separated from the Order and the Force. She was living in the past when the future was being written and Revan sneered in disgust.

"New pet?"Canderous asked, glaring through his mask at the woman imprisoned behind a force-field. Revan spared Taya a quick glance before turning back to Canderous.

"An old friend who seems to think I owe her something. Nothing to worry about, Mandalore."

Canderous seemed startled at Revan acknowledging his status and the former Mandalorian General took a moment to collect himself before he responded.

"I don't worry, Revan. I'm just wondering why you're keeping her alive. Wasn't that ship carrying weapons bound for Ryloth?"

Revan grunted in affirmation, glancing back at Taya. Despite the passage of time, she was still the same. Her heart got in the way of the fight and she likely had no idea what contraband her ship had been carrying.

"Do you know what you were carrying on that little rust-bucket of yours, Taya?"Clearing her head through sheer strength of will, Taya mustered a cold glare for her once-friend.

"I know it wasn't slaves, Revan. The captain said it was a simple contract for a shipping company in the Hutt Sector on Ryloth."

Revan huffed in disgust at how ignorant Taya had become.

"Nothing is as simple as fear, General Kenobi. You were carrying weapons for the local Hutt in control of the slave colony on Ryloth. Sharra the Hutt. The bloody space-slug wanted more profits so he was going to use the weapons to raid Kala'uun in the Lonely Five Range. You know how the Hutt's thugs act; they could have killed hundreds and taken many more as slaves with those weapons."

Taya took in what Revan had nearly spat at her though gritted teeth. She could tell by the subtle shift in Revan's stance that he was telling the truth as he saw it and despite her anger at the fate of the _Star Runner _and her crew, the Exile sobered slightly at the implications before latching on to her anger once more. Anger had been a shield in the last five years and filled the hole the Force left within her soul.

"Same old Revan. It doesn't matter how many die so long as they fit in with your plans. If you couldn't use this as a means of striking at the Hutts would you have even cared about one transport and the meager weapons it carried? You never cared before... or perhaps you cared too much?"Ignoring Taya, Revan turned back to Canderous, the invisible presence of Sarna and her hand-picked guards obvious to Taya as she tried to figure out what was going on. Revan had changed, but he was still the cold, calculating bastard he'd been near the end of the Mandalorian wars and she was at a loss. She had never known how to deal with that Revan and now it seemed she was being forced to. Well, forced to if she wanted to come out of this alive.

"Revan..."

Revan ignored Taya's call, conversing with Canderous for about a minute before the Exiled Jedi continued in a raised, annoyed tone.

"**Revan!**"

Canderous and Revan both turned to the Exile, taking in her furious expression before returning to their conversation. Unable to channel her anger into the Force, Taya allowed it to consume her momentarily and spoke before her brain analyzed exactly what she was saying.

"I see it now, Revan. You're fighting this war in the name of your father aren't you? Or maybe it's all about your mother and your Clan."

Canderous had stopped speaking as soon as the patronizing tone had come from the cells behind him and he closed his eyes, waiting for the sound of bones snapping as Revan crushed the life from the woman mocking him.

"You think I didn't know? You told Alec everything, Revan and he told me. Do you know what else he told me? He told me why you refused to return to Coruscant. Did your precious Master Kreia find what she was looking for before she sent you to Cathar? Did she plant that mask there on that ravaged world so you'd think your Clan had something to do with the Genocide of Cathar or did those barbarians get what they deserved once you murdered all that was left of them on Dxun. Is that what this is all about now, Revan? Some petty revenge from a petulant child with too much power and too little-"

Canderous had taken it upon himself to shut down the Force field restraining the Jedi and had her in a stranglehold, moving to snap her treacherous neck. Revan had not spoken or moved the entire time and the stillness of the deposed Dark Lord spoke volumes over his opinion.

"It's been so long since someone challenged my decisions with something so base as emotion. Do you know what my title is in the Sith Hierarchy, Taya? The Lord of Revenge. I was named for it, born to carry out my father's legacy and restore my mother's and my Clan's honor. Those that survived the battle that separated me from the Clans and led to Master Kreia bringing me to the Order had nowhere else to go but the Clans. They joined other Clans and warriors and did as all Mandalorians do save one at the bidding of Mandalore. I was beyond his authority, being the son of the man who commanded the loyalty of the Clans in Exar's war and I joined the battle against my Clan... my people because what was done to the Cathar; a brave and honorable people was without honor. They were all without honor. They lost the meaning of what it is to be _Mando'a_. Those _dar'manda_ mocked our heritage and I enjoyed killing them all, I reveled in bringing about the Cathar's revenge on that scum that called itself Mandalorian and when I removed Mandalore the Ultimate of his head, I took my new name, my true name." Waving off Canderous, Revan moved into the cell, ignoring the way the Mandalorian was staring at him through his mask. Canderous was conflicted by what he had heard, but he knew his history well enough to know what had happened on Cathar at Mandalore's orders and Cassus Fett's hands was shameful. It was part of the reason Canderous never put Juhani in her place for her constant spiteful barbs.

"You're a monster, Revan. You did not fight the Mandalorians because it was the right thing to do, you did it from some twisted sense of honor; the very reason the war was even begun! You are no better than those animals we slaughtered in the war." Canderous laughed at Taya, Revan's amused chuckle joining in moments later.

"The only ones being slaughtered in that war were the weak, _General_. All others died with honor... died as men and women should. You still have a lot to learn... and even more to endure before you can die with honor, Taya. How you fought in the war was... simply a step in the right direction."

Without waiting for a response, Revan left the Exile to her thoughts, continuing his discussion with Canderous as if they'd never been interrupted. Pushing aside her anger with sheer force of will, Taya realized Revan was going to keep her alive... that he had a use for her.

"Revan you bastard! If you think I'll be a tool for you to use like the rest of these so-called soldiers you are mistaken!"

Revan listened from outside of the cell-block, his gaze turning to his belt where his lightsabers rested before speaking to Canderous.

"Like all craftsmen... I care for my tools. I maintain them, I use them properly and when the time comes for them to be discarded; I replace them accordingly. She has her uses, Mandalore. As all beings do. We only have to apply her skills in an appropriate scenario to benefit from it."

Canderous nodded absently to Revan, his mind going back to the woman in the cell. He knew a little of her from tales told by other Mandalorians in the war. She was far from a coward, but her tactics were simply un-Mandalorian. Where Revan used logic, Taya used emotion. It was a dichotomy of sorts, but Canderous knew the superior strategist was the one who could battle without emotion. Despite his title, despite his motivations in those years of warfare, Revan never let his emotion cloud his tactics.

In a way, he was always in control of the battle, always taking everything into account and with cold calculation, it had been Revan's unwavering tactics that had beaten the Mandalorians, not Taya's heartfelt actions.

As with chess, sacrifices were necessary for victory. If it took all your pawns, you used them. If it took the castle and the knight and the bishop and the queen to claim victory; you used it. Victory was all that mattered and that was the way war was won.

AN: There we go! Just a little encounter with an embittered and Force-blind Exile and the Lord of Revenge in his element! I hope you enjoyed!


	40. Chapter 39: Preparations

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"Revan will come here. It is inevitable. He cannot ignore my power, or the Star Forge. Be ready for him, my apprentice and prove yourself to me by defeating him. Remember it was he who started this war... he who abandoned the Jedi Order to spread fear and hate and war and pain. You will be doing yourself... you will be doing the galaxy a favor be ridding us of him."_

_~Darth Malak to Darth Shan prior to the Battle of the Star Forge~_

Chapter 39: Preparations

Czerka Corporation maintained offices on most _civilized _worlds within the borders of the Republic and maintained outposts on a number of border and rim worlds as a means of obtaining assets without dealing with Sith or Republic trade restrictions.

The loss of their assets on Kashyyyk had been offset by the gains brought from the Tatooine operations in the wake of the resolution to the Tusken attacks. It was once more cost effective to place assets on the arid Outer Rim world and with those assets came the greed that had created a galaxy-spanning corporation.

Survey crews were sent out to nearby systems and due to its proximity with the Hutt's worlds, Czerka was able to obtain information on a series of hostile takeovers of the military variety. While experienced with business ventures and employing a small army of security officials, Czerka lacked a battle fleet which could respond to the loss of resources vital to the corporation. Interplanetary affairs were normally handled by mercenaries or pirates recruited from the Hutt's own ranks to protect the company's assets.

In short, Czerka lacked the ability to protect their investments in the Hutt territory. With the Hutts being neutral in the Jedi Civil War, neither the Sith nor the Republic would intervene if word spread and if the worst would happen and the company's involvement in the slave-trade from those worlds was discovered, Czerka's stocks would suffer an unacceptable decline.

In the bowels of the shipyards on Sleheyron, Yuthura Ban observed the construction of a long-range Sith fighter that would help to supplement the Revanchist forces. The design was similar to a standard Sith fighter, but it was larger; less maneuverable and ultimately slower than the Sith Fighter. Dubbed the Sith Interceptor for its sinister profile, shielding and armament, the craft was an excellent choice for a combat insertion or a heavy fighter. It could take more of a beating and held the armament of a small corvette.

Revan had used a ship similar during his days as the Dark Lord of the Sith and Yuthura felt herself approving of the practical design of the craft. It was designed as a support craft with hyper drive and enough room to be comfortable for a crew of four on a prolonged transit period.

A distant rumble drew Yuthura's eyes to her flagship. The _Leviathan _hovered over the shipyard, her Ion engines rumbling as she rotated slowly, testing the effects of standard planetary gravity on the _upgrades_. The ship was hardly an Interdictor and looked more like a Republic battleship.

The ship had increased in size out of necessity and housed several new reactors in a rearranged engineering deck. The massive battleship carried four times the armament of standard Interdictors and had lost its old profile in favor of a wedge-shaped mass of gray metal mixed with visible black and red pain from the original design.

Yuthura had heartily dubbed it a Dreadnaught due simply to what it was capable of. Revan had also approved of the new design, citing the need for a protected bridge and increased firepower. The upgrades to the Interdictor had taken less time than it would have taken to build a squadron of Interceptors and Yuthura allowed a small smile at the efficiency of the freed slaves of the once-Hutt world.

Soon the entire of the Revanchist fleet could benefit from the upgrades and added advantages of the Interceptors and Dreadnaughts. Smaller strike forces could be assembled and used to maintain their expanding borders with the added advantage of dedicated fighter squadrons and the carrier-based designs of the Interdictors could be afforded to be bypassed in favor of a dedicated warship.

_"So long as we have the resources to complete the upgrades..."_

The Twi'lek Dark Jedi thought to herself grimly. None of the upgrades would matter if they were hit in force by either the Republic or the Sith. Despite clearly superior capitol ships and heavier fighters, the numbers would work against them. There was also the timetable Revan had lain out for her to consider and Yuthura pushed aside the desire for power at the prospect of having the only Dreadnaughts in the fleet at her disposal.

Revan had survived the Mandalorians, the Jedi and the Sith and to stand against him was suicide. Yuthura knew enough about the Force from her Jedi training to know when the Force was with someone and Revan was truly a favorite of the Force. A Jedi would have said Revan had a destiny, but Sith were more practical. Destiny was simply being less likely to die... up until a certain point where you outlived your usefulness.

The Lady of Betrayal. That had been her title after she had cast aside her given name and took one for herself. Two milky pools fixed sightlessly on a flickering of the Force. It was a bare hint of the power that had been denied to her over a year before, when the Lords of Pain and Hunger had allied with the Lord of Destruction and stripper of her powers, her title and her beneath robes of cream and a brown cloak, Darth Traya's body carried scars inflicted upon her by her student Sion and even after a year of recovery, the old woman's body was slow to heal without the Force.

Gasping as a sharp pain traveled up her spine, Kreia staggered and blindly bumped into the armored form of a soldier. The former Jedi Master recoiled, covering her face as she tried to shy away from the beating she knew would come while cursing herself for being so helpless.

She had been given as a slave to the only creatures in the galaxy who's greed and depravity exceeded the Sith's. Sleheyron's volcanic surface was buried beneath machinery and slave housing, but the blind former Jedi could still feel the suffocating heat pressing down on her, forcing her breaths to come in short, painful gasps as her body tried to heal itself.

"Are you alright, Ma'am?"

The polite, quiet tone of the soldier confused Kreia greatly and she cautiously lowered her arms from where they shielded her head, looking towards where the amplified voice had originated.

_"Endure a year of this place after tortures even your nightmares can't imagine and see if you are alright."_

The words did not escape Kreia's lips as she lowered her gaze, knowing the mercenary or guard she had bumped into had likely not noticed her slave collar. Yet. The former Sith tensed when fingers brushed against her collar and she blinked in confusion when the soldier swore before a click sounded audibly.

"Evans to _Leviathan_, do you copy?"

The comms crackled briefly from the interference of the machinery before the communications officer of the newly-refitted Dreadnaught answered.

"Copy, Evans. What have you found in the lower levels, Sergeant?"

The Revanchist Sergeant took in Kreia's sad appearance before looking past her to the hovels within the enclosure his squad had breached. Hundreds were housed in the underground slave pen, the heat of the planet's natural surface was noticeably present and the Sergeant wished his squad had come across the slavers in charge of this camp and not the Deltas. The Special Forces had checked and cleared all hostiles shortly after the initial invasion and aside from a few stragglers and insurgents; the enemy had either been killed or were detained."We've got a work camp in this sector. Going to need some techs to slice a few hundred slave-collars. Records my squad recovered show it to be a Sith camp. Mainly captured Republic soldiers and civilians that didn't cooperate with Malak. I think Lord Revan is going to want to see to this camp personally. There could be loyalists imprisoned here from the transfer of power in the Sith Empire."

The communications officer briefly relayed the situation to Yuthura Ban before the Twi'lek former slave and Academy master agreed.

"Lord Revan will be informed, Sergeant Evans. Please remain until reinforcements arrive. Lord Revan is currently on Roon securing food and other necessary supplies from our operations there. The _Reclaimer_ should arrive in a few days. Until then secure the area and do what you can for the slaves. Try to separate the Republic soldiers until Lord Revan decides their fate."

The Revanchist Sergeant acknowledged before cutting the comms and turned to speak to the old slave woman. The former Sith soldier's words died on his lips at the old woman's expression.

"R- Revan is alive?"

The woman asked in a hushed tone, her sightless eyes watering slightly at the thought. Revan had been her apprentice for the better part of a decade before he'd moved on to become a Knight and then a General. She had followed him as the General and even when he had become Darth Revan, but she had thought like most of the galaxy that Revan Qel-Droma had died over Sernpidal after Malak's betrayal.

"Sergeant, this is very important. I must speak to Revan. He will know me by the name Kreia. Please, you must take me to him as soon as possible."The soldier frowned beneath his mask, uncertain of the suddenly feverish light that had crossed the old woman's features before he reached to his helm, activating his comms again.

"_Leviathan, Evans. I have a slave here that wants to meet Revan personally. She says her name is Kreia and she seems to be in a big hurry to talk to him."_

Suspicious, the Revanchist communications officer opened a comm line to the _Reclaimer_ and requested an audience with Lord Revan on a suspicious manner involving slaves originating from Sith worlds on Sleheyron. It took a few minutes, as Revan was in the middle of reading a report, but the deposed Dark Lord's voice came across the line and the _Leviathan's _communications officer nervously relayed Evan's report.

The silence that had come after mentioning the old woman's name caused the former Sith manning the communications console to shift nervously as she glanced up to where Yuthura Ban was arguing with a former Academy Student over personal communications from their ship. All of the Revanchists had families, but the boy, the officer thought his name was Dustil; had been adamant about getting a message off to his family to let them know he was alive and fine after the Republic assault on Korriban.

The comms officer sympathized, but a communications blackout on all but military lines between active Revanchist forces had been ordered by Revan himself and the boy was testing Yuthura's patience on his continued attempts to gain clearance for a short message home.

Had Dustil not shown so much promise as a student, Yuthura might have simply killed him on the spot instead of allowing him the leniency of arguing the decision with someone who couldn't change the orders, nor would.

"Send a detachment of Deltas from the _Starkiller_ and have them bring Kreia directly to Roon and the _Reclaimer_. If the old woman is who she says she is, she will be a valuable ally. If she is not, I will tear her to pieces myself for using that name. Also, offer that Sergeant that found her a promotion. He's earned it for bringing this to my attention. You as well."The comms officer stuttered out an acknowledgement before sighing in relief. A promotion would get her out of the communications department and up to command. As a Commander she wouldn't have to speak directly to Revan or relay his orders and that would certainly spare her a few early gray hairs.

Revan Qel-Droma brushed his fingers over the red and black lines of his mask. The mask he wore now was a replica of the original he'd found on Cathar years before, but it was still done in the neo-crusader design favored by the Bloodravens.

Whoever the Mandalorian woman in the vision the Force had granted him from the original mask was, Revan knew she was a Bloodraven. She could have been his mother for all he knew, but the armor and the Clans made her a sister. A sister slain because she refused Cassus' honor-less orders to murder the Cathar after they had already been beaten.

It hadn't meant anything to him as Dark Lord of the Sith, but Revan made a promise as he gazed at the replica mask in his hands. He would avenge the fallen Mandalorian sister who had died with her honor trying to defend the Cathar. Cassus Fett would die like the honor-less _dar'manda_ he was.

Until then, there were reports to go over and with a glance at the pile littering his desk, Revan frowned in annoyance. Paperwork was a necessary evil of running an army and he needed to make sure their resources were being dispersed in a way that would allow the gunners of the ships to still have ammunition and the pilots to still have fuel. Sleheyron helped and the Revanchist efforts on Roon had made the planet a good stronghold with enough resources to hold out against a vastly superior force indefinitely. The position of Roon and the effects of the Cloak of the Sith as the natural barrier to prevent a fleet from approaching through hyperspace without specific coordinates had been a major factor in choosing it as the new Revanchist throne world.

The diverse selection of transplanted flora and fauna had also made Roon ideal in providing food to an occupying army. Aside from a few scattered settlements, Roon was uninhabited and unclaimed and Revan had already been in talks with the natives in securing the world for the emerging Revanchist Empire.

The fact that the inhabitants were to isolated and backwards had played to Revan's advantage in the admittedly unreasonable negotiations but with luck, peaceful cooperation and eventual assimilation of the Roon natives would be secured.

Grunting in annoyance at another report of dwindling supplies of raw materials necessary for fabricating more warships, armor and weapons, Revan considered the next step in his relatively small campaign.

Exceeding the means of the Revanchists for a sustained campaign was his largest concern, but with time and some good old fashioned fear, Revan was certain the newly-formed order of rogue Sith would endure in the wake of the coming battle for the Star Forge.

Smirking slightly at the thought, Revan turned his attention to a nearby console where a complex series of spy networks had given him the intelligence he needed to coordinate with Bastila, the Sith and the Republic when the time came to strike back at Malak and the Jedi alike.

The Sith were falling back across a hundred worlds in a blind panic at the prospect of Darth Revan's return and the Republic was mobilizing the sad remnants of its once-massive navy into a fairly respectable armada that was poised to strike Rakata and the Star Forge.

Conquest could wait, Revan decided as he pushed aside his thoughts and contacted HK-47. There was the larger problem of getting both the Republic and Malak out of the picture. Sitting back and waiting for them to destroy one another was probably the best strategy, but Revan needed- well, he wanted Bastila safely on board a Revanchist ship before the Sith and Republic fell upon one another like rabid Kath Hounds.

"Query: Is there someone you would like me to kill, Master?"HK-47 was prompt as well as silent in his approach of his maker and Revan glanced from where he was staring at the scrolling texts of the spy reports to his personal assassin with a half-smirk on his face.

"There are many that need to be dealt with, HK-47; but I can be patient when it is required of me. What I require of you, my friend; is much more complex."The Hunter Killer droid's eyes gleamed in appreciation of his master's complex logic. While simplicity was preferable in many situations, it was not as taxing for a droid's advanced computer core and HK found them to be... well, boring. Revan seemed to acknowledge this meatbag shortcoming and mapped out strategies that rivaled the complexities of an advanced computer processing core that most Sith ships housed. A droid could appreciate that.

"Report: HK-47 is standing by, Master."HK kept his response to Revan short as his master relayed the coming strategy for the retaking of the Star Forge. Appreciating the level of deceit and bloodshed that would follow when his Master appeared over Rakata Prime, HK was forced to reroute several base-emotional algorithms through a feedback loop to prevent his glee from overwhelming his overall processing speed.

"Drop in ahead of the fleet on a Sith Interceptor. Once in-system, the ship will not respond to commands and will crash on Rakata Prime. Control the crash as best you can and then proceed to the Temple of the Ancients. There you will wait until Onasi, Nurr and Vao make their appearance. Follow them inside and remain undetected. If Vao carried out her mission and relays the strategy to Bastila, safeguard her continued existence and Bastila's. If she fails in her duty to me, eliminate her as well as Onasi and that mindless Jedi slave."

Revan paused for a moment, wrapping his thoughts around ordering HK to murder Carth, Kaera and Mission if the situation demanded it before mentally shrugging. They were of no importance, but Mission's loyalty would be rewarded if she accomplished the task he had given her.

"It is vital that Bastila not board the Star Forge. Neutralize all threats to her life within the Temple structure with extreme prejudice. Should Onasi and Nurr choose to assault her, end their interference. Permanently. I will upload the battle-plan to you before your mission on an encrypted file, until that time you will obtain the necessary equipment and supplies needed to carry out your mandate. Bastila Shan is the key to the entire battle, HK. Protect her with your life. If Mission fails to inform Bastila of the specifics of the plan, present the information to her and secure transport to the _Reclaimer_ once we arrive. You will then assist the Deltas in securing the boarding actions for the final assault on the Star Forge."

HK-47 considered Revan's orders before voicing a concern.

"Concerned Query: How is the encryption within the battle plans to be broken to the meatbag Bastila Shan can observe the necessary functions?"

Revan allowed a cold smile to cross his lips. His link with Bastila's mind had grown strong and when the time came, the deposed Sith Lord would broadcast the passcode for the information he would store into HK-47 directly into her thoughts. It was the only way he knew the plans... the true plans, not the generalized version he had given Mission would reach Bastila. HK-47 would carry out his mission admirably and once the Republic began their assault on the Star Forge, they would seal their own doom, as well as that of Malak's Sith.

"You need not worry over that, HK. Just... try to be subtle until the main battle. There will be enough slaughter to go around, I assure you."

HK gave an amused acknowledgement and eagerly approached the console the spy network across the Republic and Sith Empire was displayed upon. Studying the files with the speed only a machine could, HK deactivated briefly when Revan programmed the assassination protocols as well as the encrypted battle plans. The droid's last thoughts before its mission overrode any current amusements was whether he had enough ammunition to slaughter all of the Sith on the Star Forge.


	41. Chapter 40: Turning Point

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"You don't understand it do you, Mission? The Republic has been losing the Jedi Civil War since Revan took Foerost the first day of the war. We can't sustain the vast fleets we used to, neither can we replace what was lost or burned to ashes in the Mandalorian Wars. The only thing the Republic has going for it right now is size. It's too vast to conquer without the support of a massive fleet or the planets taken. Revan never tried to destroy the infrastructure of the Republic and that is all that has held Malak at bay. If we ignore the threat of Revan, we'll lose. A man like that comes once in a generation and he isn't one you forget about in favor of a larger threat. We're going to lose, kid. All because the Republic is going after Malak first and not Revan."_

_~Embittered Commander Carth Onasi shortly before the Republic offensive against the Sith Empire~_

Chapter 40: Turning Point

Carth Onasi stared down at the controls of the nameless shuttle he had been forced to fly across the galaxy in with a frown as he considered the wars that had ravaged the Republic and his homeworld for over a decade. Heroes had risen and fallen, vast armadas the likes of which the galaxy had never seen before had fought amongst the stars, leaving behind vast graveyards suspended in space and time, where the decay of most worlds would not affect the blasted hulks and slag left behind from the Mandalorian and Jedi Civil Wars.

What was coming, Carth could feel it in his bones, in his very soul. The Republic was weak after the Mandalorian wars, but it had still held together and with the intervention of the Jedi Order when Revan and Malak had returned as Sith, the Republic held together. Barely.

The problem with barely holding on was obvious and unless something changed and fast, the Jedi Order and the Republic would fall apart, whether they defeated the Sith or not. Carth knew that somewhere out in the galaxy his son was hiding amongst the Revanchists that had been recruited on Korriban in an attempt to _save_ some of his friends from the evils of the Sith and the brutal indifference of Revan's regime.

"Son you look like you've got something on your mind."The Telosian soldier started slightly, glancing with surprise at the old former Jedi that entered the cabin and casually took a seat beside him. Pushing down his thoughts, Carth closed off his expression and shrugged indifferently.

"I'm just worried about my son. I'm grateful for Juhani bringing that datapad with Uthar's plans but... I'm worried about what he's doing now. The Revanchists are loyal to Revan and I get the feeling something bad is going to happen."

Jolee scoffed, shaking his head and trying to push back his own unease. When he'd looked at Revan, he'd seen something that... had he been one of those old fools back at the Temple on Coruscant, he would have called destiny.

Revan's Force-presence was blinding in its intensity, not its preference. He'd never seen anything like it before, not even from Exar Kun or Ulic Qel-Droma in the years of the Great Sith War decades before. It wasn't the sheer strength behind Revan's aura, but the power its holder had so intricately woven into his very being.

One simply didn't survive as many battles as Revan Qel-Droma or as many assassination attempts without being smart about it and Jolee was just as nervous as Carth over the matter, if not more so. Nomi's aura had been a bright star in the Force, scorching away the darkness and imprisoning the enemy in a wall of light. He'd heard what it had done to Revan's father Ulic and he wondered briefly how it had not been done to Revan himself.

Manaan had changed that path of speculation and Jolee shuddered mentally at the implications. Revan had found a way to exist outside of the influence of some of the most devastating Force-assaults both light and dark by immersing himself deeply in aspects of both.

Emotions, passion fuelled the darkside while empathy and compassion tempered by mental control taught by the Jedi fuelled the light. Revan had found a... middle ground that allowed him to resist the devastating powers of a fully trained Jedi Master or the fully destructive potential of a True Sith.

Humbling wasn't the word he'd use though. Damn confusing, maybe; completely and totally terrifying; most likely. Revan was power, pure and focused in its raw intensity and somehow; through fate or training or just dumb luck, Revan was able to influence the Force to favor him.

Or so it seemed.

"Your boy has to make his own choices and... what he did on Korriban after Juhani gave him that datapad was the right one. The kids old enough to enlist without you and this is the only way he knows how to fight the enemy. You gotta let do his job while you do yours, Carth. You gotta trust that your boy loves you and forgives you and you him. You've got yourself distracted, boy and in a war distractions can get you killed."

The _Starkiller_, a small and deadly Mandalorian battle cruiser named for the Mandalorian Clan that once controlled it had been captured after Althir by Revan's Republic Forces. After a brief refit, the craft was converted to a special mission craft for its stealth capabilities.

Those abilities were what led to the _Starkiller_ dropping out of hyperspace outside of the Roon system. Within moments, the space around the small but heavily armed and armored ship was filled with varying battle ships from across the galaxy, the vast majority former Republic and Sith vessels.

"This is _Starkiller_ requesting transfer of cargo with _Reclaimer_."

The voice was amplified, but even through the modulator, the tone was distinctly feminine. A moment's silence filled the comms before the _Reclaimer's_ communications officer answered in a calm, detached voice.

"_Reclaimer _acknowledges, _Starkiller_. Please verify."

The former Sith soldier standing at the controls of the _Starkiller_ glanced back at the captain; his eyes flickering through the heads-up-display in his helmet to confirm his leader was who she said she was. A quick scan via ship's systems of the bridge was done and then sent to the _Reclaimer_.

Records of the Revanchist black-ops team on _Starkiller_ were compared to the scans before _Reclaimer _did her own scan of the former Mandalorian ship.

The entire process took ten seconds.

"Verified, proceed to the aft cargo bay for transfer and rearmament."

_Starkiller's _captain shifted slightly, frowning beneath her red and black mask. Something had happened since her crew had gone to Sleheyron to pick up Kreia. Being special forces, the captain had hoped she would have been informed but she also knew open communications across hyperspace were risky and most large operations were coordinated directly by Lord Revan.

"Understood, _Reclaimer_."

The communications officer on the bridge of the _Reclaimer_ sighed slightly as she prepared to inform Revan of the _Starkiller's_ arrival. Contacting Revan was always unsettling.

"Milord, the Deltas and the _Starkiller_ have returned from Sleheyron."

Revan slowed his pace as he jogged through the corridors of the _Reclaimer_, his brown eyes flickering to his wrist-communicator. Taking a moment to catch his breath and brush away some of the sweat threatening to cloud his vision, Revan reached into the Force, a deep frown crossing his features when he could not sense Kreia.

"Seal off the aft cargo bay and prepare my squad. There is treachery afoot."

Clenching his hands into fists, Revan took in a deep breath before continuing his jog towards the cargo bay as half a dozen red and black armored Revanchist soldiers followed after him, their armored boots clicking along the hull in a disciplined and in-sync march.

Kreia, blind to most things since the betrayal of Darth Revan by Malak narrowed her sightless eyes, the milky white pools casting a dead stare towards the cargo bay's doors as they opened.

Without the Force, the former Lady of Betrayal was blind to the powerful presence of her former apprentice, but having spent a decade raising and training the young man gave her the simple ability of recognizing something so simple as his scent.

It had changed slightly since he was a boy, becoming stronger, though not unpleasant and Kreia listened to the uneven breathing of her former student. A small curve rose at the edge of the former Jedi Master's lips as she offered a simple bow, knowing the silence was mostly from confusion.

"Why can't I sense you, Master?"

Revan asked, bewildered as he brushed his forehead with his forearm. The tunic he wore was light and short-sleeved. A deep crimson in color that was soaked with sweat from his exercise. Light trousers in a dark gray, nearly black color ended at the knees, the remainder tucked in to light black boots.

Even without his armor, Revan was an imposing figure and the former Jedi Knight and Deposed Sith Lord towered over Kreia at just over two meters, his dark brown hair matted with sweat and brushed back in a tangled mess.

Even though the blood-colored shirt Revan wore was short sleeved, the black leather gloves Revan wore with obsession remained on his hands, protecting the tools of a mass murderer and warlord.

Kreia was able to pull this vague image of her old Padawan through a small, faint tendril of their old bond that Sion and Nihilus had failed to corrupt with their perversions of the Force.

"You are looking in the wrong places, Padawan. Think of that business on Malachor V, and Alec's lost lover and then ask me what is missing."

Even without the Force, humans and most sentients had a degree of psychic control. For one trained as a Jedi to understand the subtleties of the mind and the galaxy around them, the Force was merely a tool that aided in the bond between minds and unnecessary for both to possess when dealing with a connection as strong as theirs.

Anger was rarely the normal state of being on Revan Qel-Droma's features. The most common expression was often a blank, slightly bored look and usually the only way to tell Revan felt anything was through a direct Force-connection.

On Rakata Prime, deep within the Temple of the Ancients, Bastila Shan started visibly from her meditation and swallowed back the lump that formed in her throat, choking the life from her momentarily as a wave of pure, boiling rage had scorched her thoughts. The former Jedi Padawan took a moment to steady herself before she reached for Revan, flinching against the violent swirl of emotions that was so uncommon in the deposed Dark Lord. Something had enraged Revan to the point of... catastrophe for anyone within a parsec.

Kreia could not control the connection her mind held with Revan's and the man she had raised as a student and in some ways, a son; saw what had been done to her at the hands of Darth Sion and Darth Nihilus.

Even without use of the Force, the Deltas escorting Kreia and Revan's guards knew something was wrong as soon as the blank expression on Revan's features was clouded with fury. The apparent anger wasn't the frightening part though; what was terrifying was how quickly the expression vanished from Revan's face. All who saw the Dark Lord's anger knew it to still be present, even when it had been hidden away behind neutrality.

Only two responded in any way to Revan's rage. On a distant world, the thoughts of a tortured and turned Jedi Padawan tried to offer support and comfort in the only way she knew she could without being with the man physically while Kreia merely offered a small, bitter smile.

With none of the rage he felt, Revan's voice echoed a cold, emotionless promise. The tone offered no room for uncertainty and all that heard Revan speak knew he was not making a threat or a promise; merely a statement.

"They will die."Rather anti-climactic, Kreia mused as Revan offered her a small bow of his head before turning and walking away. She was of little use to him without Force-powers. While Kreia would make a good commander, the fact that she had spent most of her life reliant on the Force would make her... little more than a child in the grand scheme of things.

Unable to follow the flow of the Force or to predict the subtle patterns, Kreia would be a liability.

"There is nothing I can do for you, Master. You must find your own way back to the Force... perhaps you can take Kenobi off my hands. She has little to offer to my war as well and... I don't wish for either of you to die in the crossfire."

It was about as close to genuine affection as Revan would get and Kreia knew that despite the harsh choice of words and the cold tone, that her former apprentice was warning her away from his war. She knew her place well already and with a bow to Revan's retreating form, Kreia turned to Sarna; who had not moved since seeing Revan's hate-filled expression.

"Child, take me to Taya Kenobi. Revan's war has no place for a broken Jedi or an old woman."

The lack of emotion present in Kreia's voice was what drew Sarna's attention and the former Sith officer nodded shakily to Kreia, leaving the rest of her squad and the Deltas to their demands while she carried out Revan's will.

The departure of the Exiled Jedi General Taya Kenobi and the former Dark Lady of Betrayal, Kreia; was only marked down as a small supply transfer and a transport launch.

Once free of captivity, Taya turned wary eyes to the former Jedi Master as two sightless eyes stared out into space, blankly fixated on something only Kreia could see.

"I thank you for your help, Master; but why would the Jedi be negotiating with Revan if what I have heard is true?"Kreia turned to the Exile with a bemused expression. Little had been exchanged between the two women and the younger had assumed the Jedi had secured her release. The hint of hope in the Exile's voice disgusted Kreia and she waited just long enough to be cruel; just long enough to give the Exile hope that the Order would take her back.

"Revan does not negotiate with Jedi, child. He knows the Force has a use for us; but that we are also of little use in his army. My old Padawan is wise enough to listen to the Force when it is necessary. Be grateful, Exile. We share a common goal and perhaps together, free of the influence of Jedi, Sith and Revanchist; we can regain what was lost."

Blue-green eyes narrowed slightly as they took in the old woman's sad appearance and with a sigh Taya glanced down at the controls of the transport Revan had given the two women. There were enough supplies for about a month before a stop on a planet would become wise and the former General had a sneaking suspicion that some of the cargo containers in the small ship's hold would be filled with credits.

Knowing how Revan thought to a small degree, Taya knew the action was not done out of kindness or respect for a former comrade. Revan was making an investment in the old woman and herself; one he would come to collect when it would serve his purposes.

"A part of me wishes to tell the Jedi of what is coming... but..."Remembering her exile and the struggle to readjust to life without the Force or other Jedi as support, Taya knew that Revan had left her with more than the Jedi ever would, even if she delivered news of the growing threat of the Revanchists.

"They would scoff at you, assume you were sent to deceive them and you would rot away in a cell in the bowels of the Temple till the end of the war. It is better to endure some hardship here in the wilds then to submit to the Council's foolishness. They have become much worse since you last saw them, child; and I do not share your sentiment. Let the Order burn if they are fool enough to not put out the flames themselves. Their arrogance damned them long ago and Revan... Revan would end you if you took the side of his enemies."

Annoyed slightly at the old woman's tone, but also knowing that she was right, Taya resigned herself to inaction. A war was already going on and she had missed it; missing the conclusion would hardly be a crime worthy of notation. She could have stayed in the Republic, may have even been able to reach Malak before the Darkside had fully corrupted him; but she had chosen Exile, had chosen to follow the will of the Jedi Council and so much could have been avoided; had she only listened to her mind and not her heart.

Destroying a Jedi's faith was a devastating thing. When it was the entire Jedi Council doing the destroying... well, one would have to use their imagination when pondering the far-reaching consequences of their arrogance. Because Taya had denied their will and joined the battle against the Mandalorians, the Council damned her along with the rest of the Revanchists and in so doing; damned themselves.

The Dark Lord of the Sith, Darth Malak; walked along the observation platform of the Star Forge, his dead gray eyes fixed to the flows of the Force as he paced. Powerful arms were crossed tightly over crimson fiber-armor of a cortosis weave and the former Jedi Knight drew his brow together in a frown.

A raw, torn wound in his mind had flickered briefly; echoing the power and anger of one he had called master and Malak was worried. Only a handful of Jedi could single-handedly stand up against his skill and power, but Revan happened to be one of those handful and Malak could not hold the fear at the thought of his former Master storming the Star Forge and seeking revenge.

Far from a fool, Malak had planned for Revan's return and even formed a proper welcome in the form of over two hundred Dark Jedi, nearly two legions of the most elite soldiers the Sith Empire could boast and some of the most deadly war machines and droids the galaxy had ever seen.

Still, Malak worried. The Dark Jedi would weaken Revan, yes; but the ways of the Sith under his rule had significantly reduced their numbers through in-fighting and promotion-through-murder had made what were once competent and professional officers into nothing more than lazy, power-hungry politicians.

With the loss of Korriban and the rumors of Revan's return, only Bastila stood in the way of the Empire's collapse and Malak frowned as he considered his gamble. He had seen into his new apprentice's mind and knew she held an affection in Revan. Knowing Revan as he did, Malak planned to use his old master's inability to form a truly emotional connection as a way of enraging Bastila into fighting him.

It was a gamble and it ran the risk of the former Jedi Padawan turning on him, but Malak was willing to take the risk. The entire of the Sith Empire was gathered in the Rakata system, tens of thousands of ships and billions of soldiers strong and while only the most-trusted and the best were present on the Star Forge, the numbers of his empire alone reassured the Dark Lord's waning faith in his victory.

A chime sounded in the dim lighting of the Star Forge's observation platform and Darth Malak smirked mentally, the gesture unable to form on his mangled face.

"Lord Malak, a hyperspace window has opened on the edge of the system. We are tracking a lone Republic scout-class transport. The Planetary Disruptor Field has affected the target and it is making an emergency landing on Rakata Prime. What are your orders?"

The Jedi had arrived, Malak mused as he considered the disturbance in the Force that had preceded the arrival of the small scout ship.

"My apprentice's forces should be more than enough for a handful of Jedi and Republic soldiers. Darth Shan will deal with the problem. Prepare the fleet for battle. I sense the Jedi and Republic's main forces will be here soon."

Mon Halan, the High Admiral of the Sith Empire in the wake of Saul Karath's defection and death; gratefully cut the connection with the Dark Lord of the Sith and began relaying Malak's orders as the Sith armada prepared for the arrival of the Republic.

In a smoke-filled cabin of a standard-issued Republic scout transport, Carth Onasi coughed against the acrid scent of smoke and burning electronics as he worked frantically to bring his ship down to Rakata Prime safely. The computer of the Republic's transport labeled the world as planetary body Lehon and Carth grunted as his fingers were scorched by the fried controls.

"Damnit, we're losing our engines; hold on!"

Juhani was in the engine room trying frantically to apply her limited knowledge of starship mechanics to give the Republic Commander the energy he needed to control their descent to Lehon while Mission shared a look with Zalbaar as they strapped themselves down in the small transport's main hold.

Jolee was busy cursing as he tried to help Juhani while Kaera stumbled as she tried to reach the cockpit to help Carth. Truth be told, the combined efforts of the crew and Carth's piloting skills were all that saved them from a watery grave as the transport set down on a small beach on the largest island making up the planet-wide archipelago.

In a cave, hidden from the sensors of the Sith vessels overhead, two red-orange eyes glowed in the dim ambient lighting as HK-47 assembled the weaponry necessary for infiltration of the Temple of the Ancients as he activated his mission protocol and prepared to carry out his master's will.

Selecting a light armament of special weapons designed for stealth, assassination and practicality for fast movement, the Hunter-Killer droid took a moment to appreciate the suppressed Blaster Rifle it had selected before activating its stealth field generator and vanishing into the darkness of the cave.

Footprints in the sandy beach appeared, the shape of them confusing the few Rakatans that came across the odd tracks that no living creature could create.


	42. Chapter 41: Reunion

_Disclaimer: I own nothing._

_"My Commanders... They wondered why I rested so much of the strategy on Bastila. They were ignorant of the potential of what they saw as an inexperienced, broken Jedi Padawan turned Sith. They didn't see what I could, couldn't see into the heart of her very being. They couldn't see what drove her to do what she did; I could."_

_~Revan Qel-Droma to HK-47 shortly before the Battle of the Star Forge~_

Chapter 41: Reunion

Those who knew Revan Qel-Droma knew he was a man who favored direct confrontations with his enemies. Those who knew Revan Qel-Droma well knew that what Revan favored was not the limit to his skills in battle and Alec Squinquargesimus was a man who knew Revan Qel-Droma well.

Two pale gray eyes stared out across the gulf of space to the Sith Fleet. The vast and mighty armada rivaled the entire Republic fleet at the height of the Mandalorian Wars and quite literally the populations of dozens of worlds stood poised over Lehon; vast formations of powerful Interdictor cruisers and countless Sith fighters silhouetted against the ancient Rakatan Star.

With patience borne of necessity, Darth Malak watched his fleet as it ran hundreds of battle drills for the coming battle. All the Sith knew the war was coming to the heart of their self-made empire and they waited in their ships with deceptive and uncharacteristic patience for the Republic and the Jedi Order to make their gamble.

The brainchild of a mind focused on military actions for nearly a decade, the coming battle for the Star Forge would mark the close of the Jedi Civil War as the battle of Malachor V marked the end of the Mandalorian War. Malak had gambled on his apprentice and his numbers and his own skills and he waited for the end to come; whatever end that would be.

Deep in his cold, dark heart; Malak knew Revan was coming. The weight of his old Master's power hung over the future battleground and all Sith that felt the Force could feel how it shifted; how it twisted upon itself in a violent collision of light and dark as the armies of light and the forces of darkness converged an entire galaxy's ability to make war on a single system.

In the Temple of the Ancients, Bastila Shan smiled slightly as she felt the stirring within the Force. The Republic and the Jedi were coming to do battle with her Master. She was not completely privy to Revan's plan for the coming battle, but the young woman knew she would approve of it. Revan was a genius when it came to battle and while not infallible; Revan's strategy would be one that would not fail in the face of the Sith Empire, the Republic Military or the Jedi Order.

The Force beckoned the former Padawan to embrace its power and Bastila closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath and letting it out slowly as she reveled in the powers at play. The calm before the storm had passed and now, the clouds stood on the horizon; poised to unleash their fury.

Kaera Nurr was grateful for Jolee and Juhani's presence as she entered the Temple of the Ancients. A chill had climbed up the Jedi's spine and had failed to leave. The uncomfortable weight of how truly vital her actions were to the survival of the Jedi Order and the Republic was noticeable and the Cathar and old man bore just enough to allow her to place one foot in front of the other.

Carth was waiting at the ship, preparing it for a quick take-off while Zalbaar and Mission waited outside of the Temple. Kaera noted the relief in Mission's young face as she ordered her to remain outside of the Temple and the Jedi Knight paused to frown briefly before she moved further into the Temple.

The ancient structure was as quiet as a tomb and Juhani felt the fine hairs on her body stand on end as she focused her amber eyes on the shadowed corners of the structure. The smell of blood and fire and death was in the air; overlaying the ancient scent of decay and the Cathar shuddered involuntarily as she tightened her grip on her lightsaber reflexively.

Something wasn't right. If this structure was so vital to the security of the Rakatan system, why was it all but unguarded? Aside from the violent natives, not a single Sith had even been seen. That changed when the trio entered an antechamber leading to the bowels of the Temple where the control relay for the dampening field were located.

Bodies; dozens of them were strewn about in various states of death. Surprise and agony were visible on a few of the deceased's features and Kaera covered her mouth as she felt bile rising to her throat. Jolee's dark eyes dimmed slightly at the sight of the massacre while his eyes took critical assessment of the positions of the dead. They had been _"stored" _in the antechamber and the vast majority of the dead were killed with a blade.

"Assassins..."

The old former Jedi Padawan muttered as he tensed. The three turned to stand with their backs facing one another and ignited their lightsabers. Two azure beams and one emerald lit the confines of the temple as the bodies of nearly one hundred Sith defenders were exposed.

The cold and brutal efficiency of the kills was appalling and as they fought to keep the horror of the violence around them from affecting their judgment, the three Jedi moved with even greater care into the ancient chamber housing the computer controlling the planetary disruptor field.

It was a simple task to reprogram the console and deactivate the energy field that had led to their crash landing, yet the bodies of the dead Sith lay strewn about the makeshift catacomb, their dead, open eyes staring in silent accusation at any who looked upon them.

At the summit of the Temple of the Ancients, Bastila Shan emerged from her meditation as a shadow formed over her. Behind the former Padawan the shape of the _Ebon Hawk_ was visible and Bastila huffed slightly in annoyance when she thought briefly of the ship that had carried her to torture and eventually apprenticeship to the Dark Lord of the Sith.

"Confirmation: Subject, Bastila Shan. Status: The meatbag appears to be functioning within acceptable parameters. Observation: Master will be glad."

The recently turned Jedi Padawan turned cold gray eyes to the assassin droid that stood over her, narrowing slightly as they took in the damage done to HK when he had infiltrated the Temple and cleared it of its hostile meatbag presence.

"HK-47. Is there a reason Revan sent you to me?"Bastila sounded weary, but a hint of amusement shone in the Sith Apprentice's cool eyes as she took in the monstrosity Revan had crafted with his own hands. She had to admit, once she threw aside the morals that had so guided her as a Jedi that she could see the appeal of the Hunter-Killer droid. Revan had taken great care to craft HK-47 and the young woman's mind took the time to appreciate the work Revan's hands had done while imagining what else they could do.

HK-47 did a brief scan of the summit, spotting T3-M4's form as the small droid rolled down the ramp of the _Ebon Hawk_. The droids exchanged a wordless greeting before HK returned his attention to his mission. Hidden protocol activated and HK's eyes dimmed as his voice requested a passcode to reveal its true purpose on Rakata Prime.

Bastila frowned thoughtfully, bringing a gloved hand to her chin in a gesture similar to one Revan would use when deep in thought. Gently brushing the tips of her fingers over her chin, the former Padawan reached into the back of her mind for the answer to HK's request for a passcode.

Almost as soon as the thought formed, Bastila felt Revan's presence within her mind and shivered slightly, her eyes glazing as they snapped open.

A set of light and heavy footsteps echoed across the summit and the Padawan turned her attention from HK-47 to the intruders, her gray eyes focusing on the two figures approaching her.

"Hey Bastila."Mission Vao greeted, smiling nervously at the former Jedi's blank expression while Zalbaar bowed his head in greeting, growling a Wookiee's greeting to the mate of the one who they owed a lifedebt.

"Mission, Zalbaar. Your presence here is not a surprise... but is your purpose?"

Mission's smile faltered as she struggled with the task Revan had given her. She could see an alien glint in Bastila's eyes that could only be cruelty. The Padawan she had known briefly had been stubborn, a bit stuck up... but she had never been cruel.

"Assassination Protocols activated; Threat: Master has given specific instructions, Meatbag. Carry out your mission or you will be neutralized."HK turned a suppressed blaster rifle on the wide-eyed Twi'lek, his finger squeezing the trigger slightly as he prepared to carry out his mission. Zalbaar's fury features shifted to confusion and anger briefly before a low chuckle broke the stand-off and the tension.

A low hum hung over the summit as a Sith Interceptor hovered overhead. The craft's red and black paint-job marked it as a Revanchist ship while the Revanchist himself confirmed without doubt who owned the craft. With casual ease, Revan leapt from the hovering craft as it near-silent engines pulsed and it moved to land beside the _Ebon Hawk_.

Landing with a light thud, Revan half-crouched as he turned to look between the four former companions, his mask hiding his light smirk.

"Passcode: HK-556-223, confirmation order Revan-762-39. Assist in securing the Temple for Revanchist occupation, HK."The droid's eyes glowed as it received its mission and it acknowledged its master with a tilt of its head before moving back into the temple while a half dozen black and red-armored Revanchist soldiers emerged from the Sith Interceptor and took defensive positions around the ancient structure's summit.

"Thank you, Mission. You carried out your purpose well."A small neural implant in the Twi'lek had registered the frequency of the shielding that protected the Rakatan Temple and Revan nodded a greeting to Zalbaar before he brought his full focus to Bastila. The former Jedi Padawan was smirking slightly, the cruelty in her eyes bleeding away to satisfaction as she took in her bondmate.

Revan wore a slightly modified version of the armor he had been known for during the Mandalorian war and his time as Darth Revan. The mask was a perfect replica of his original recovered on Cathar and the armored breastplate was done in a slightly lighter armor style, giving the Revanchist a better range of movement.

Slowly, Bastila closed the distance between her and Revan, her gloved hand rising to rest on the deposed Sith Lord's mask before she calmly released the straps holding it in place. That Revan allowed such an action from someone who had yet to prove themselves friend or foe to the Revanchists was unsettling to Sarna as she watch on. A hint of jealousy pulsed through the young woman before she squashed it beneath her sense of duty. Revan had been more than clear where Bastila Shan would stand in the Revanchist ranks and that was at his side. The former Jedi Knight had even gone so far as to call the fallen Padawan an equal and while she was skeptical of Bastila and her motives, Sarna trusted Revan's judgment.

Revealing Revan's calm face as she slowly removed the mask; Bastila stared into the man's eyes for a long, silent moment before she brought her lips to his lightly. The kiss itself was chaste; perhaps even innocent if one did not take into account who the two participants were, but the time for reckless passion had not yet come and Bastila pulled away with a thoughtful expression, her gray eyes glowing in contentment.

"What does my Lord command?"Bastila asked quietly. Only Revan heard the question and the deposed Dark Lord smiled, his beard shifting slightly at the almost half-mad grin on his face.

"What does my Lady wish?"

Revan returned, reaching across the distance between them to take Bastila's hand in his own. The apprentice of Dark Malak relented and allowed Revan to pull her beside him as their minds opened fully to one another and they shared their desires, their plans and finally, their affection for one another.

The intensity of Revan's mind made the turned Padawan weak in the knees, but she fought off such a cliché response to touching power and simply reveled in the moment of acceptance. She was Revan's and he was her's. She gave herself to him, her love of the man intact despite her torment and time as a Sith and Revan had returned the gesture, eliminating all doubt within her mind by opening his own to her scrutiny.

The leaders of the Revanchists had finally been reunited and while the Republic Fleet received an all-clear from Carth from the Republic transport sitting on a beach on Rakata Prime's main island, Kaera Nurr looked on in mute horror as the Force showed its hand.

"We have to warn the Republic, we have to warn the Jedi!"Kaera's voice was a mere whisper as she stared at the image on the console before her. Within moments of deactivating the planetary disruptor field, the computer had directed her to where the force field surrounding the Temple could be deactivated. To the Jedi Knight's surprise and horror, Mission had followed behind her with the aide of the native Rakatans and had betrayed them to Revan. Unknowingly, Mission had carried the key to the Revanchist's victory in her own neural lace and it had scanned and catalogued the forcefield before sending the information to HK-47. The assassin droid's advances systems had relayed the information back to the transport he had taken to Rakata Prime where Revan had been waiting patiently with his personal guards.

The Revanchist fleet remained where it had been for weeks; guarding its holdings as they prepared for the war that was coming once the Republic and Sith forces destroyed one another.

The temptation to cast all of his forces into play in the Rakatan system was great, but with the resources of the territory recently taken from the Hutts, Revan was satisfied with his gains. Greed and ambition led to defeat as easily as poor planning.

What use would an army that had cast its lot with his betrayer be to him anyways?

"I want revenge on Malak, my love."

Smiling slightly at the endearment, Revan reached out calmly, taking his mask from Bastila's hands and calmly replacing it over his features as he turned his eyes towards the massive form of the Star Forge overhead. A cold, emotionless chuckle escaped the deposed Dark Lord's lips as he brushed his fingers along Bastila's cheek thoughtfully.

"Deprive him of his plans for the both of us, my dear. He prepared the Forge for a head-on assault. I have of recent found alternate means of war that does not involve something as... treacherous as the Star Forge. The only thing I need the Star Forge for is a distraction. The armies of the Sith and the Republic will fall upon one another here. They will break one another apart in the space around this small world for nothing."

Revan smirked slightly, pulling his hand away from Bastila's face as he felt her shifting through his thoughts via the bond they shared.

"They will weaken one another until yours is the dominant force in this galaxy..."Bastila stated, a small wicked smirk crossing her pale features. Revan shook his head slowly, drawing a frown to cross Bastila's lips.

"Until _our_ force is the dominant one in this galaxy, love."

It surprised Bastila how easy it was for Revan to rationalize sharing power. The concept was too generous to come from a Sith and too fallible for the Jedi to accept... It was a gamble the same as Malak's plans for her but that was perhaps the genius of it. Revan was removing the possibility of betrayal of an apprentice by having not an apprentice, but a partner. Their mental connection made deceit all but impossible and with a sigh, Bastila melted into Revan's side as she turned to look at the controls to the Temple's force field.

"I suppose we should destroy this place?"Revan smiled slightly, using the Force to disable the shield around the temple. Jedi were predictable and he knew instead of confronting him and possibly risking the lives of the entire Republic armada; Kaera would retreat to her ship and try to warn the strike force.

"Patience, love. The pieces are in play. Let the game play out before we resort to anything too drastic."

A simple reprogramming of the console deep in the bowels of the Temple would finish off what remained of the Republic and Sith fleets once the Star Forge was blasted into slag. Once that was accomplished it would only take a few moments to reprogram the Temple's defense networks to only allow himself and Bastila back into the temple.

Or perhaps someone sharing enough of their genetic code. Either way, it was an infinitely simpler solution to the Republic and the Sith that didn't involve participating in a massive battle or sacrificing countless soldiers to retake the Star Forge.


	43. Epilogue: The Forge

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"When they... you know, the historians, the tacticians. All those know-it-alls that say they have all the right answers when they weren't there... When they were too busy hiding behind our lines to fight because they were worth more to the Republic alive... When they talk about the Battle of the Star Forge... They don't talk about the battle itself, they talk about what happened afterwards. They like to point out how bad things would be if Malak had not been challenged there. They like to point out how miniscule Revan's forces were at the beginning... They always seem to forget about the battle... I don't see how. Anyone who was there will remember it. Anyone who looks on that battlefield and sees those bodies frozen forever in vacuum or the debris field that was the pride of the Republic Navy and the Sith Armada... They'll remember it for what it was. Hell given form."_

_~Unknown; Corrupted Journal entry of a survivor of the Battle of the Star Forge~_

Epilogue: The Forge

Countless soldiers stood poised over the Rakatan Star. In the minds of each soldier... each man or woman was a tale of a life lived and yet unfulfilled. Entire worlds were emptied of their youth; many of the younger generation taking up arms in either the Sith Empire or the Republic Military. Countless souls fought around the Star Forge, their blood the price to be paid for the end of a war that never ends. Of a battle between Light and Dark... between the forces of good and evil.

Poetic though the notion seemed, it was a very real occurrence. The Jedi and their Army of Light rose against the Sith and their Brotherhood of Darkness. For thousands of years and hundreds of generations the Force would echo the loss of so many of its servants. The Battle of the Star Forge would mark the end of an era.

It would mark an end of Jedi and Sith dominance. The last breath in both Orders before they would descend into chaos and become something profoundly... smaller. The tattered remains of the Jedi Order would flee in the face of hundreds of assassinations and abductions while the Sith Empire would crumble to in-fighting, weak leadership and even weaker resolve.

The Battle of the Star Forge itself was a spectacle the likes of which the galaxy hadn't seen for half a decade. Malachor V would always remain the bloodiest battle of the Mandalorian Wars, but even it failed to capture the hearts and minds of the galaxy as what veterans and survivors refer to as simply; The Forge.

On a world unknown to the greater Republic and even a majority of the Sith fighting there, the Jedi Civil War drew to a close. It wasn't the final battle, but it was the most devastating blow to both sides that would seal their fates. A Dark Age would descend upon the galaxy where the Republic and Sith Empires would shatter into feuding and competing sectors.

To defer to a more credible source... the barbarians were no longer at the gates... they were in the streets, in the cities... in your very homes. The Forge brought an end to order. It brought an end to the galactic unity that had held the Old Republic and the Sith Empire together. With the leadership and army of the Sith crushed, the Sith fell to whoever was strongest... or more cunning. With the economic infrastructure of the Republic strained to its breaking point, planets and even entire parsecs fell back to protect themselves and their failing economies.

The question plaguing the combatants of that slaughter was not of what would happen to their worlds or their kingdoms but simply... if they would survive the entire of two galaxy-spanning empires vying for the other's destruction.

On the observation deck of the Star Forge, the mind of Darth Malak was fixed on a very different question. By most historical accounts a deranged lunatic, self-preservation was likely the last thought of the Dark Lord of the Sith's mind as he bore witness to the end of the Republic and his Empire.

Starfighters of both modern and even obsolete design filled the space around the Forge with fire and death as massed battle groups charged one another in strict naval formations that had never held up when fighting Mandalorians.

The formations of the battle groups held against the Sith though, as the Republic's massed fleet pushed its initial advantage of surprise. The battle had been expected, but the fact that the Republic fleet had jumped almost on top of the Star Forge had never been taken into account by the Sith.

The end result was a favorable beginning for the Republic that would degrade into a struggle for survival as the hornet's nest that was the Sith Armada was stirred. Working in three-ship formations, the Sith quickly used pack-tactics to push back against separated Republic ships or the smaller strike forces.

The Sith were able to form a protective sphere around the Star Forge while the defenses of the station itself held off medium and large boarding craft. Smaller fighters and craft had limited success in boarding actions on the massive space station, but Malak's preparations for his former Master's return reaped devastating consequences for any Republic Marine, Jedi Knight or Operative that managed to reach the Star Forge's interior.

With the Star Forge boarded, Malak's thoughts failed to turn to the battle raging outside as he looked inward, trying to find the connection he had once shared with Revan Qel-Droma as he obsessed over their coming confrontation. Malak's single-minded focus that had made him a legend in the Mandalorian Wars and a terror as a Dark Lord of the Sith was the only reason the Republic's much smaller fleet wasn't crushed in the initial hour of the battle.

The amount of influence the Revanchists had on the battle was very limited. They didn't even form an assault fleet and the few Revanchist ships seen during the battle acted merely as observers.

A handful of Revanchist fleet ships that were sent to ensure Revan's survival were lost to Sith or Republic actions. The newly designed Dreadnaughts were easily overwhelmed despite their superior design. The numbers turned against them were simply staggering and all hope of survival was lost if escape was not achieved.

Few looked upon Rakata Prime and the few that did could do nothing by the time the danger revealed itself.

On Lehon, HK-47 stalked Kaera Nurr, Jolee Bindo and Juhani as he followed his protocol to eliminate threats to the Temple of the Ancients. The assassin droid considered taking the initiative and striking, but an assault on three well-trained Jedi would be suicidal and counterproductive to its mission. The Revanchists lacked a real military presence on Lehon and the result of HK-47 holding off on assaulting the three Jedi was probably the only reason the Republic or Jedi Order survived in any recognizable form.

Fleeing from the Temple of the Ancient and the reunited Dark Lord Revan and Dark Lady Bastila, Kaera frantically tried to reach Carth on her wrist-communicator only to find the device jammed by the efforts of HK-47. It would be hours before the trio reached the Republic transport that Carth had stayed to guard and it would cost the Republic dearly.

In the Temple, Revan spoke in quiet, reassuring tones to Bastila as she knelt in the summit of the Temple. The former Padawan's Force-aura visibly formed around the young woman as she orchestrated the battle overhead through her Battle Meditation, doing as Revan asked and forcing a stalemate between the two fleets.

A deadly and costly game was being played with the lives of countless Sith and Republic soldiers above, yet Bastila was not swayed by the drama. The energies of the Force as it violently clashed between its darker and lighter energies was taxing, but Revan's gray presence balanced Bastila and she was able to maintain her control of the battle; drawing her strength and conviction from the man she placed above all others.

Revan had shown her true freedom where the Republic and Sith only enslaved her. She felt like a tool to the Sith, while the Jedi burdened her young heart with the very survival of the Republic and the free galaxy. Revan asked only that she help both sides destroy one another... as they would have done on their own and her conscience resisted the guilt she felt each time a Jedi's light was extinguished above.

Controlling a battle on the scale of the one being fought overhead was exhausting and even dangerous and Bastila risked falling into a Force-induced coma each time she reached out with her mind and tried to control just a few more of the soldiers battling above.

Revan was there though, an anchor in her heart that turned the pain and rage and guilt to stone. A man, who used his own body to shield her, now used his mind to do the same. Bastila knew though the bond that Revan would pull her back should the danger to her become too great and it only made her try harder.

Revan was her entire life as far as she was concerned. After the tortures suffered at the Sith and the repression of the Jedi, Bastila fell into her passions with reckless abandon. She was young at the time, and perhaps a bit naive, but Revan had no intention of betraying his bondmate and his unwavering trust during their separation had simply taken her breath away.

Revan believed in her... trusted her with not only his life, but the lives of all of his followers and even the fate of the Republic, the Sith and the Jedi. It was the kind of devotion she had only fantasized about as an adolescent and it was humbling as well as invigorating. It was almost as if Revan had been a part of her that was missing all those years she had been a slave to the Jedi Order.

Some view love as something great and beautiful and right... but the reality is that it can easily be twisted and used to do unspeakable and horrific things.

They may have loved each other, but the Revan Qel-Droma of that time and the Bastila Shan were not good people by most standards held in the galaxy. Their actions may have been logical... may have even preserved the galaxy when the Great War of the True Sith finally came; but they were not the actions of good and noble people.

Revan acted to preserve his vision of the galaxy and Bastila... Bastila acted to preserve her image of Revan.

Unknowing pawns of the Revanchists, the Sith and Republic continued their battle while those within their ranks that felt the Force clearly were drawn into the chaos of the moment and missed the interference of Revan and Bastila.

Debris and bodies floated through the vacuum of space, colliding with still-battling vessels or their brothers and sisters in death. The skies above Lehon burned with tens of thousands of artificial stars as scores of sentient beings fell to the weapons and tools of war.

The _civilized_ galaxy and its two dominant forces devolved into a barbaric horde. Strict and uniform tactics designed to maximize enemy casualties while minimizing friendly loss gave way to weaker strategies and more primitive tactics.

A significant number of ships simply rammed one another when their weapons and power reserves ran dry, becoming makeshift missiles that wrought untold destruction on both sides. Noble sacrifices of brave soldiers were never told to descendants as the escape pods of fleeing survivors were burned from the stars.

The battle raged in a violent spectacle of war for hours before an emergency transmission was sent from the surface of Lehon. Kaera Nurr had finally reached her transport and Carth Onasi's voice reached the ears of the commanders of the Republic Fleet and the Sith Communications officers spying on the Republic comm frequencies.

_"Revan is down on this planet now, he's got something planned. We have to get out of here before we lose everything. He's got Bastila with him and he's using her Battle Meditation to influence the battle."_

Despite being deposed by his apprentice and once-friend. The name Revan still held sway in the Republic and Sith Fleets and dozens of ships broke off their assaults to flee. Few Sith survived the battle once their comrades turned on them for trying to save their own lives. Seeing the advantage, the Republic made a fatal mistake and pressed it.

By evening the Star Forge was nothing but a debris field, slowly being consumed by the Rakatan Sun while its Master and the countless Sith and Jedi and Republic soldiers on her were slain.

The ruins of the Republic and Sith fleets burned up in slowly decaying orbits around the Rakatan sun along with the Star Forge while those fortunate enough to escape to Lehon learned of the painful fate visited upon intruders by the natives.

In the bowels of the Temple of the Ancients, surrounded by death and decay, Darth Revan and Darth Shan stood side-by-side at the computer console controlling the planetary disruptor field; the cruel smirk curving Bastila's lips hidden behind a shadow as Revan lowered his head briefly in respect to Malak as his former apprentice simple burned for his betrayal.

It was... a logical choice, though Revan briefly felt that he had cheated Malak of his final battle. Alec had deserved a chance to battle Revan on open ground, man-to-man, but Malak had betrayed Revan. Malak had stabbed his master in the back at the opportune moment and the end result was a brain-damaged and once-brainwashed sociopath who lacked the emotional capacity to comprehend the honor behind the act.

Bastila Shan had wanted revenge on Malak and she saw nothing wrong with ending the battle at the push of a few buttons. Revan himself could not deny using a similar tactic on Malachor V and he could even appreciate the irony of repetition. The largest battles of both wars ended the same way. The push of a button and the crushing, fiery embrace of gravity.

The betrayal of Darth Revan by Darth Malak, the Jedi's partially successful Mindwipe and the mental and emotional connection shared by Revan Qel-Droma and Bastila Shan was the reason for such a simple and underwhelming end to an epic battle and power struggle that otherwise would have been much... messier.

It was clean and simple and terrifying, these weapons and tools of mass destruction that so easily ended the wars. First with Malachor V and then with The Forge. Regardless of how cheated the dead would feel at the circumstances of their ultimate defeats... They couldn't deny the logic in the strategies... nor the genius of the simplicity such devastating tools brought to an overwhelming situation.

A kill-switch had been thrown on the Mandalorian Fleet over Malachor V. The same fate fell to the Sith Empire's Armada and the Republic's vast fleet. The same tactical mind was at play behind both catastrophes and none could deny the irony... or their parts in that battle's end.

Malak's betrayal had brought Revan's wrath to the Sith. The Jedi's tampering with Revan's mind and the Republic's support led to the emotionless decision on Revan's part and both side's readiness to dump the entirety of their fates on the shoulders of a single young human woman... a girl really at the beginning of the war, was what sealed the conclusion.

Small and desperate acts have far-reaching and sometimes devastating consequences. The Jedi would later tell the tale of the Prodigal Knight. Ironically the actions of Revan saved the Jedi Order and when the remnant Sith of Malak's Empire, namely Sion and Nihilus were crushed by the Revanchist fleet over Telos.

A series of cataclysms, chance encounters and bitter reunions would lead to a redemption of sorts for the Revanchist and his later wife, Bastila Shan. But that is a story for another time.

A series of choices... Desperate, abhorrent and unnatural were what led to the actions of Revan Qel-Droma.

It's sometimes hard to fathom that one man could influence so much... but the company the man kept was far from normal and the power of the choices he made echoed through the Force and the galaxy for millennia after.

The End of Part I: KOTOR: The Power of Choice.

AN: As Promised, the end of this story. I hope you all appreciated the tale I tried to illustrate here. I wanted to show the consequences of small actions and their far-reaching effects while remaining at least partially true to the SW genre while making it new, exciting and a bit less idealistic and more... well, I guess realistic would be preferable to cruel. I plan to try completing a few of my other stories that have been on hold for over a year while I dealt with Real Life and the magnitude of writing this story. I still want to write a second part of this story concerning the time between KOTOR I and II as well as the second game, but I felt like this was a good place to draw a conclusion to this story. At over 260,000 words and two years in the making, I felt it was time.

Again, thank you to all of you who stayed along for the ride. I read and appreciated every review and I hope some of you try your hand at writing. It's rewarding as well as a good outlet and you never know how it'll turn out until you try.

Until next time,

~SLDR~


	44. Interlude: Phantoms

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"Hero... Villain... Savior... Conqueror. Darth Malak's words when he spoke of his old Master. The Sith like to take titles with their names.... Pain, Hunger, Betrayal, Destruction... I suppose Revenge was as good as any for Revan. He was there to punish the Jedi and the Sith... The entire galaxy really for our arrogance. We looked back at Exar Kun and what he did to the galaxy and we thought we'd been better... We thought we were different because that was a lifetime ago. That was our fathers and mothers... our grandparents. We thought we were smarter... stronger... We thought to deny the nature of ourselves in the hopes that we would never fall so far. Revan punished us for our arrogance... He burned away the lies and showed us what we were capable of becoming. The Lord of Revenge... An appropriate name as any I suppose. You can't really narrow down who and what Revan Qel-Droma was with words. They don't convey the proper meaning. You can call a man a beast, but he's not mindless like a rabid Kath Hound... You can call him a monster... try to put some kind of emphasis on the evils he unleashed... but he wasn't a monster... He was a man. He could walk amongst us and we'd be none-the-wiser to the threat he posed until he revealed himself. With Revan, when that time came it was much too late to do anything about it."_

_~Jedi Council Archive log journal entry left under the name Kaera Nurr~_

Interlude: Phantoms

A harsh silence had filled the bridge of the _Revenge_ as the newly christened flagship of the Revanchist Fleet hovered motionless in space. A distress call from the _Jedi_ had reached the Revanchists and the request had been specifically addressed to Revan himself.

The recorded message was sent down to the Revanchist leader's quarters and Revan sat on his bed, shirtless as he stared blankly at Atris' pale features as she begged her former friend for assistance. A small hand rose from behind Revan, softly caressing his right shoulder before teasing his bicep and resting on his forearm.

"Come back to bed, love."

Bastila's voice was soft, quiet and almost a whisper, but the bond between the two shifted briefly with annoyance at the interruption. Revan closed his eyes briefly, an apology rising in his mind before he turned to meet his lover's gray eyes.

"Its a trap. Atris was never really good at lying. Look at the way her eyes tighten as she begs. One might mistake it for anger or disgust at having to ask a deposed Dark Lord of the Sith for help, but its something else. For as long as I knew her... for as long as I observed her interactions with my former Master as she was taught the secrets of the Jedi Archives, I have never seen her hide her anger when dealing with one she truly despises. She is either being coerced or more than likely, she seeks to throw me off balance and draw my attention."

Nearly a year had passed since the devastating Battle of the Star Forge. The Revanchists had not interfered with the greater galaxy that was under the control of either the Sith or the Republic and it had worked out well for the fledgling Empire. The Republic had suffered a devastating economic collapse with the wide-scale loss of so many resources to the Mandalorian and Jedi Civil Wars while the Sith had descended upon one another in a power struggle that effectively destroyed what remained of their fighting forces.

Korriban lay as a grave world for the ancient and the more modern Sith as the decaying ships and corpses lay amidst the ancient ruins. Creatures infected with Darkside energies fell upon the few who took to the wilderness of Korriban to escape mutual annihilation and while a handful still lived in the wilds of Korriban or the burned out husk of what was once Dreshdae, they posed next to no threat to anyone but themselves.

"Revan, you know as well as I do that the Senate disbanded the Jedi Order. What little influence they have rests within the Jedi Service Corps on Bandomeer and perhaps the few remaining archives and enclaves on Corellia, Tython and Kataar. Whatever Exar Kun and Malak did not destroy would have been moved or hidden in the past months. The Order was decimated in the war, especially during the Forge. The Sith, aside from perhaps Nihilus and Sion lack any real strength and what remains of them will wither and die. Perhaps the Jedi will recover, love... but it is not our concern."

Revan brought his hand up to caress Bastila's cheek, reveling briefly in her beauty and her presence before he gently tugged on a strand of her hair and smirked at the look of frustration crossing her features.

"I don't wish to make enemies of all my friends, love. That is what we have the True Sith for. They will come eventually and it is in our interests that the Jedi or the Sith Order Malak and I created survive in some way. We do not know where Nihilus and Sion operate, only that they seek the end of all Force-users that don't follow their ways. The Jedi ironically operate in a similar fashion when they look at the Sith or even us."

Revan lowered his eyes briefly, not needing to see the flinch crossing Bastila's flushed features as she thought of the Order that had raised her. It had taken time for the rage she'd felt to be tempered and Bastila now looked on the Sith and the Jedi with pity. They both fought an endless battle against one another for dominance of the Force. The Jedi incorrectly thought balance was achieved by purging emotions and using the Force for good while the Sith used their passions to fuel their destructive powers towards rage and violence and destruction.

They never saw that true balance in the Force was when one Jedi faced one Sith and they saw not an enemy, but an opposite. Jedi and Sith were wielders of the Force and struck one another as two opposing forces of nature, with devastating results. Revan had seen this and had sought a balance through the Force by recreating the Sith Empire and then later the Revanchists. The latter had a more profound effect and they remained unscathed by the destruction that descended upon the Jedi and the Sith.

"I wonder how the True Sith view this lovely mess."Revan mused aloud, his fingers rubbing absent, mindless patterns into Bastila's exposed skin. Taking his eyes off of the bulkhead from where they had wandered from his lover, Revan turned to look back at the frozen image of Jedi Master Atris.

"Let them destroy one another..."Revan decided, using the Force to cut off the communication and returning his attentions to a very pleased Bastila. Whatever fate would fall upon Atris and the other Jedi she gathered on Kataar were her problems, not his.

As the two leaders of the Revanchist Empire drifted off to a light sleep, Revan's hand unconsciously lowered to where Bastila's rested over her abdomen. There was a slight bump visible in the toned muscles of Bastila's stomach and beneath, a new life was forming.

Opening his eyes slowly once Bastila fell into the embrace of unconsciousness, Revan sat up with painstaking care so as not to awaken his bondmate. The former Jedi's eyes flickered to the inactive console that had displayed the desperate message from Atris. With a frown, Revan turned back to stare down at Bastila's sleeping form before rising from the bed and pacing as he tried to quiet his thoughts.

Bastila and he were not in agreement on this. They'd had their share of arguments over the past year, but it had never differed so greatly. While Bastila was annoyed at the interruption to their evening, she was also curious about what was going on with the remains of the Jedi Order... The problem was not her curiosity so much as it was her concern.

She didn't want to risk their unborn child should it become necessary and while it wouldn't have been Revan's first choice to sacrifice his own flesh and blood... He'd done it before, during the Mandalorian Wars.

The heart of their unspoken disagreement rested not in the fate of their unborn heir, but in the upbringing the child would receive. Bastila had hopes of raising the child; but like he, did not have the slightest clue how to proceed. The child was an unknown and more often than not Revan found himself wondering what exactly his role would be in raising a child.

He was secretly afraid of what the child would think when it grew to understand the difference between right and wrong and it saw what its parents had done. He feared his child would hate them for being born of what the rest of the _civilized_ galaxy saw as mass murderers.

There were other problems with a child that Revan considered as he tried to calm his troubled mind. A potential hostage to be used against them, a liability when it came to running their Empire. There were countless unknowns that Revan's logical mind could not grasp. Bastila loved the child already, her hands often drifting to her abdomen as she thought of the future.

It was perhaps one of only a handful of times in his life that Revan Qel-Droma was truly frightened and with a sigh, Revan lowered himself to the ground, falling into a set of push-ups that drew a welcome ache to his body. The distraction from his thoughts was welcome, even if he had to adjust his fighting style slightly to make up for the increase in muscle mass.

From where she rested, Bastila unconsciously shifted at the darkness of Revan's thoughts. He had a tendency to look too far into the negative. His strategic mind was preparing itself for the potential problems that would befall them when the child was born. Had it been anyone else, Bastila would have found it irritating and unsettling, but she had chosen to love Revan... That alone was enough to temper her thoughts.

Within a week, Kataar was little more than a desolate rock and the Revanchist Empire closed off its borders to outsiders as their leadership tried to come up with the reasons for the disaster. If not for the message from Atris, Revan would have believed the incident to be a natural disaster... but the alarming truth left to the former Dark Lord of the Sith was that the balance he had worked so hard to create had fallen in a single day with the last of the Jedi Knights.

With patience borne of fear and ambition, a towering form clad in solid black robes watched from the bridge of the _Ravager_ as Republic, remnant Sith and even Revanchist vessels investigated the remains of Kataar. Had he not had an apprentice to break and train, Darth Nihilus might have tried to track the Revanchist vessels. Fear and uncertainty stayed Nihilus' hand as he watched through a mask shaped and colored as a human skull as the last of the Jedi Order collapsed and scattered in fear of his powers. He did not care for dominance like Malak, or control like Revan. Nihilus only cared for his hunger and at the moment, with the millions of Force-sensitive Miralukans and the hundred-odd Jedi Knights that had been on Kataar; he was sated.

That would not last forever, though.

**Part II to Follow...**


	45. Prologue Part II: Exile

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"Revan once said that to a Mandalorian, Exile was a fate worse than death... Alec- Malak never understood it and neither did I... at least, not at first. Exile to a Mandalorian means to become __Darmanda__, to lose what it means to be Mandalorian. We... the- the victors of that battle wanted to punish the Mandalorians for all they'd done. We wanted them dead, or imprisoned... not free to roam but... but that freedom was their prison. They had been warriors in the most feared army and race in centuries. They'd fought in countless battle and saw things that are indescribable. To have the means of that glory taken from them... to have all they'd ever known in life destroyed before their eyes by one greater than them all... Well, there was no going back for them... as there is no going back for me."_

_~Personal Journal of Taya Kenobi, shortly after the Battle of Malachor V~_

Prologue Part II: Exile

**Malachor System, 3960 years BBY**

Fires as numerous as the stars in the sky burned, the smoldering wrecks of countless warships acting as a mass funeral pyre for all those slain over Malachor V's shattered form. The planet itself... once a near-perfect sphere and the product of billions of years of formation was a shattered wreck of stone and dirt and water. What little water and atmosphere remained on the shattered world was strewn about, floating in an almost teasing manner as sections of the world devoid of life brushed through the vital resources.

Two figures moved through a shadowed and damaged corridor, the taller of the two silent aside from the mechanical servos within its durasteel form. The medical droid guided the patient at her commands with only the slightest of touches to tell her which direction to go. A whimper of pain escaped the other figure as she stumbled, her body resting against the wall as agony spread through her seared mind.

A bandage covered Taya Kenobi's eyes and thin trails of blood leaked down her face as she struggled to use what few senses were left available to her. She had been blinded by the cataclysm that had been the final moments of the battle. She had made the mistake countless thousands of survivors had made by looking down upon Malachor V in its moment of destruction and she paid a heavy price.

They healers had said the damage was temporary, a simple shock to the system and that she would make a recovery... but sight was the least of her worries. Sliding down the wall of the battle-damaged corridor, panic seized the young woman as she instinctively reached for the Force. The act of comfort instilled within her since childhood was met with a dead nothingness that sent the Revanchist General into a panic attack.

Footsteps echoed through the corridor, announcing the presence of a man she would have known without even laying eyes on him but a day before. With a frown, General Malak looked down upon his... The tall former Jedi's frown deepened as he moved on, unable to bear the sight of his lover and friend in such a state. He wasn't heartless like Revan, wasn't able to turn off his emotions and the rage at the sight of what Taya had been reduced to was enough to drive him away.

Anger was a path to the darkside. Anger was good, it could be used. Rage though... Rage made you careless, made you act without thinking and it was a path to failure and suffering. Taya had been inconsolable when she awoke with only four of her senses intact and despite being the closest person to her still alive, Alec felt like a stranger.

Something had changed when the Force had fled Taya. Of those still alive within the Revanchists, Taya had been the one most affected by the climax of the battle. There were countless wounded, many having given up their limbs and organs and selves to the battle but Taya had lost everything.

Her life had been the Force, her soul... the very essence of herself was missing and Alec saw a stranger, not a friend. Merely a woman who resembled one he had known... one he had cared for.

Disgusted with his thoughts, Alec spared a glance at the medical droid before silently directing it towards Revan. He had told Revan they should offload the wounded before the next part of the plan was put into play and Revan had agreed.

Why they were going to the Unknown Regions of the galaxy and towards the old Sith Empire, Alec did not know but he knew that something had changed... Something so vitally important that he almost felt as Taya did. A stranger in his own body, a torn and broken soul weary from the war and the suffering and the sheer waste of it all.

Grunting in annoyance, Alec moved on, a sneer on his face as he considered the next step in the war Revan had orchestrated. It wasn't enough to end the war so much as it was to prevent the next. Revan had been fighting two wars; the war with the Mandalorians and then the war with the Republic that had left itself so open to invasion, conquest and domination. The strong ruled and the weak followed. Those too weak to stand and fight or survive would perish and it would be a fate earned by their ignorance or weakness.

"Alec?"The voice held a question, as if unsure of whom it was that occupied the corridor with her. Malak glared down at the weakness on display before him, the anger replacing whatever sympathy he would have felt. Taya had broken rank and tried to save those trapped in Malachor V's gravity well when the Mass Shadow Generator had been activated. She had known it would coincide with Mandalore's death and still she had tried to save those who were already dead.

A lot of good men and women had died because of her. Men and women Revan had deemed trustworthy for the next phase of the war. Not only had they been trustworthy, they had been necessary to the plan.

Without those lost under Taya's reckless command, Revan had to seek alternate means of forces. They couldn't teach the Republic how vulnerable it was, or the Jedi Order how utterly feeble and flawed they truly were without an army that could match it. The lesson would instead become a coup and Revan had no interest in ruling himself. Merely in ruling wisely.

"Get on your feet, General. Don't let what's left of your men see you like this."Alec's voice was stern, though his face showed some concern he could not mask behind his disgust. Stiffening, Taya fixed a sightless glare towards her friend and lover and shoved away the hand that moved to assist her.

"You have no idea, Alec. No _idea_ how this feels. Do not assume I am weak when you of all people should know better."

Malak calmly stood back, turning his head to where he senses Revan approaching. The Leader of the Revanchist Jedi was clad in his armor and mask and Malak nodded his head in both greeting and approval. Revan had sworn to continue wearing the mask until justice had been done for those so brutally murdered on Cathar. Those who had been boiled alive in the oceans for nothing more then being in the Mandalorian's way.

That justice wouldn't come without a high price, Malak knew. The wearying battles, the painful recoveries and the funerals for those who'd fallen from their ranks.... Alec knew all too well the price necessary for justice. The Mandalorians were defeated, scattered and nothing more than a nuisance. Their way of life was gone and would likely never return after the horrors and atrocities they unleashed but the symptoms... the reason they were able to gain so much power... were able to go so unchallenged remained. The Jedi and the Republic's sniveling and weak leadership.

They knew nothing of war and struggle as they wasted away in their rotunda and their spires and temples and mansions. It was a mockery of those who'd suffered and those who died to leave them as they were.

Revan was preparing to strike out into the unknown, to seek out what had driven the Mandalorians to war, but Malak knew there was more to it than just the True Sith that Revan was so fixated on and as he spoke of his thoughts with his friend and leader, Revan saw it as well.

"Why is she still here?"

Taya stilled her movements at the sound of the voice. There was an emptiness there that was a thousand times for frightening than the anger and disgust she had heard in Alec's voice. Revan was a different man. One she had not been as close to, but a friend none-the-less and to hear the toneless vibration of his voice, amplified by that damned mask that she didn't know why he still wore with the Mandalorians dead, she knew she was dealing with a stranger, not her friend.

She regarded his inquiry accordingly, cutting off Alec's response before he could even begin to think of what to say.

"I came to be relieved, sir."

There was no emotion in her tone, though her feelings were broadcast for all to see through the Force and her mental shields were nothing more than raw, festering wounds within her damaged psyche. Still, she could feel the approval in Revan's voice when he responded, a smirk in his words as he cast her a single, tight nod.

"You stand relieved, General."

The bastard hadn't even used her name. Hadn't even acknowledged her and as she fought down the urge to scream, Taya stood tall, saluted the Revanchist and turned away, allowing the medical droid to take her to the transport shuttles that were delivering those too wounded or weary to continue the pursuit of the Mandalorians to the Outer Rim.

"You told me she wanted to leave, Alec."

There was danger in Revan's voice, an icy chill that drew Malak's full and immediate attention. With a casual disregard that would spell death and pain for billions, Malak answered.

"She is weak. Powerless. She is of no use to us in the coming wars."

Revan chose not to respond as Alec moved to shadow Taya, the tall former Jedi General making certain the unnecessary distraction to his own station was removed as quietly and painlessly as possible. Once all were out of earshot, Revan huffed slightly, scoffing as his voice filled the empty corridor.

"She may be stripped of her powers, old friend... but she is far from weak."

Shaking his head in disgust at how completely Malak could delude himself. Malak was not removing a weak person, merely cutting away his own weakness and the new Dark Lord of the Sith brushed his fingers over the hilt of his primary lightsaber thoughtfully. Alec looked outward for weakness, not inward and it would be his downfall.


	46. Chapter 1: Awakening

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

_"They concern themselves with the cost of war... but they don't look at the faces of those men and women who fall in these battlefields. They don't see the tragedy that is just one death. They don't see anything but a negative cash flow to their bloody bank accounts. It's an insult to all the Revanchists and the Republic is sacrificing to protect their meaningless way of life. They live in luxury while countless others suffer and die. I don't fight for the Republic or their bloody Senate... I fight for the soldiers... for the people, for all those who have suffered under the Mandalorian's merciless onslaught. I had hoped that you of all people would understand that."_

_~General Taya Kenobi to Jedi Master Atris, shortly after the Battle of Iridonia~_

Chapter 1: Awakening

A startled gasp escaped Taya Kenobi as her eyes flew open, only to snap them shut again tightly as an acidic burn stung her very sockets, seeping into her brain. A whisper of a power lost to her for a decade urged her to fight off the exhaustion and crushing wish to just give in to the lethal amounts of sedatives polluting the kolto tank around her and the former Jedi Knight and General pushed back with a fury she hadn't felt for years.

The nightmare she'd had was an old one. It was an end of sorts... the last time she spoke with Malak and the last time she had deemed Revan a man worthy of her respect. The sociopath lurking behind a mask of civility had been unleashed during the war and what pale imitation of empathy and feeling he had was crushed beneath emptiness and loathing that had burned a dozen worlds and ended countless lives.

_"Awaken..."_

It took a moment for Taya to put a name to the voice echoing against the very depths of her ravaged soul and she gasped aloud, the feeling of gravity pulling her down as she coughed violently and pushed away the breathing apparatus that had sustained her life moments before.

Cold air, acrid with the scent of antiseptics and taxed machinery bombarded her senses and panic gave way to uncontrollable shaking as the chemicals in her body and the sense of blindness drew a painful and violent purging of her system.

Bile joined the remnants of contaminated kolto around the shivering form of the Exile and Taya rubbed at her eyes in a futile attempt to clear them. Tears pushed forth from ravaged ducts and the young woman wiped at her mouth with a grimace as she stood, her arms crossing over her chest protectively as she looked around the room in confusion.

The Force, it was there... For the first time in a decade the powers of a Jedi flowed through the woman in a myriad of violent echoes and crippling pain. It was like trying to walk on a broken leg, the body knowing what to do, but not entirely able to follow through.

Death was the last thing Taya Kenobi had felt through the Force before it'd been lost to her ten years before and it was the first thing her eyes and senses took in after she involuntarily purged her body of the poisons meant to keep her sedated.

Memory was lost in a haze of sensations that drove her to cower briefly and claw at her eyes before she pushed aside the childish, animalistic desire to flee and forced herself to stand.

Pale, blue-green eyes took in the circular medical chamber and the occupied kolto tanks of the crew she had once traveled with.

Memory was slow to return, but Taya remembered traveling with the old woman that had once been Revan's Jedi Master and she drew in a shuddering breath to clear away the grogginess that had taken hold of her to her very bones.

A dull, passive set of eyes scanned the room as training demanded before the young woman rose and brushed off the bitter sludge that remained of her kolto treatment. She could tell without checking the instruments that the men and women who had crewed the _Ebon Hawk_ with her were dead and it drew up a bitter reminder of Revan's treatment of her crew when she'd begun the new part of her life that she simply titled, Revan's handout.

She was determined to earn her keep, though and Taya had been relaying information of strategic and economical importance back to Revan. The man had yet to reply directly to her communications and Taya remembered the way messages had been passed during the Mandalorian wars, insisting on keeping them as brief and professional as possible.

It was something familiar in an alien environment and it brought a brief sense of nostalgia to the woman before she pushed aside the feelings for something more practical.

"Right, then."Taya muttered, casting a shadowed, slightly mortified look at her clothing... or lack there-of. A simple skintight thermal unisuit covered her torso fairly well and ran down to just past her hips before being cut off much too short for her comfort in the chilled, recycled air of the medical bay. While it provided some covering and warmth, the garment was merely superficial and with the fabric soaked in kolto, Taya knew her options were limited if she wanted to avoid sickness or even hypothermia if the temperature dropped anymore.

In her mind, Taya could hear the sneering voice of Revan echoing a familiar cadence. It pushed against the pain and confusion and brought focus and clarity. Even with the Force acting almost like a hammer to the side of her head, Taya fought against the voice in her mind asking her if it was too much for her, if she was too weak. She supposed it was fitting that it sounded like Revan. The man... the coldness that had overtaken him after Malachor V, that had been there when she'd last seen him on Coruscant in the room appointed to him by the Senate when he came to ask for permission to pursue the Mandalorians beyond the Rim; haunted her.

Still, there was work to be done and unsettling as an internal voice filled with Revan's cold, emotionless baritone was, it filled its purpose. Bare feet took purchase on kolto-slicked durasteel and Taya coughed violently, spitting remnants of bile and spittle from her mouth with a disgusted and feminine grunt.

"This is intolerable!"Taya groaned, pulling back her strawberry-blonde hair into a ponytail to keep the residue of her treatment from her eyes. The sticky, cold feeling of the kolto seeped into her pores and the former Jedi Knight scowled in annoyance, moving with careful steps out of the kolto chamber and finding a set of three doors on opposite walls.

The center door appeared damaged and the Exile's annoyed scowl turned to a frown as she really took in her surroundings. This was a medical bay, well-stocked and modern and there was no-one there but those from her crew that floated dead in their tanks.

Turning to the right, Taya checked the console beside the door leading to the morgue with a troubled furrow to her brow. It was security-locked. This wouldn't normally be a problem for Taya, except for the whisper of the Force in the back of her weary and sore mind telling her she _needed_ to be in that room.

_"I don't pay you to do, I pay you to think."_

Not that Revan actually paid her, Taya noted with a scowl. The lecture had been given after one of her more disastrous but successful defenses during the war. A right bloody mess, Revan had called it and she found the description fitting. Had she held her position, her men would have lived for another battle, but then the civilians they were supposed to protect would be dead.

_"They aren't the ones fighting, Taya. We can't stop and save them all, no matter how much we want to. They need to make their own way, not get in mine."_

It had been one of the first signs of Revan's change. He'd been growing into a bit of a recluse during the course of the war, but his change had been quick and perhaps it merely exposed what he was and not who he'd become.

"Bloody sociopath."

Taya muttered darkly, her blue-green eyes flashing in the medical bay's artificial lighting as she turned and inspected the door to her left. Thankfully the console was functional and easily granted access to the storage bay. Cursing aloud, the Exile tossed through the cargo containers for clothing, only to find a few possibly useful odds and ends. A set of mechanical components and an emergency medical kit of... questionable origin fit nicely in a medical satchel, though Taya would have much-preferred a cloak, or even a tunic to ward off the chill.

Spikes of frozen agony pierced the Exiled Jedi Knight's brain, driving the woman to her knees with a choked gasp. The shrill cry of misery she wished to make was cut off by a nauseating quiver that worked itself from her very core. Bile burned its way through her throat and the former Revanchist General spat and coughed with abandon as she huddled in the medical storage bay.

The Force, for all its nuances was not subtle in its warning and Taya drew in a shaky breath, regaining her composure as she tried to recall the events leading to her current predicament.

She had been poisoned, that much was obvious and it would have even been fatal to her as it was to the others who had crewed the _Ebon Hawk _except for the Force suddenly returning to her after ten years... after she had all but forgotten how it felt. It was overwhelming and even a tad bit unwelcome.

The Exile's body and mind fought off the foreign, yet tantalizingly familiar invasion of the Force's influence and with a slight gleam to her eyes; Taya drew her brow together in a confounded expression. She was certain this was all Revan's fault, but she was not sure how exactly.

Pushing aside the irrational resentment for her former leader, Taya crawled along the cold durasteel floor, using a console to pull herself to her feet unsteadily. It was no coincidence that her fingers brushed the sequence necessary for opening the morgue and the former General pushed down her ailments to follow the Force's suggestion.

It was painfully slow progress, but Taya regained her senses long enough to recognize Kreia amongst the dead within the morgue. The old woman who had helped to train Revan and in essence unleashed a monster upon the galaxy lay stiffly on one of the room's medical cots, her eyes opened and staring at nothing. The milky-white clouding the atrophied eyes of her deceased companion drew Taya's gaze briefly before she looked away with a shudder.

Revan, for all his emotionless tendencies was going to have a conniption of epic proportions. The man treated the majority of the galaxy with indifference that bordered on a sociopath's apathy, but those few he cared for... he cared for deeply. Kreia had been useless to Darth Revan without the Force, true; but the woman had been a surrogate mother to the boy once and had led him briefly to his station as a Jedi Knight.

Of course, the Revanchists had remained within the confines of what was once Hutt Space and certain sectors of conquered former Sith territory and since the mysterious destruction of Kataar, no diplomatic relations had opened between what was left of the Sith, the Republic and the Revanchists.

A brief debate raged within Taya's mind to take the pale dark brown cloak Kreia wore, but she resisted the urge. Modesty and comfort were secondary to respect. The dead deserved some respect in the very least.

Moving beyond Kreia's body with a sigh of sadness, Taya stared down at the mangled body of a man wearing a miner's hazard suit. The body was twisted in agony, rigamortis somehow emphasizing the pain in which the man had passed.

The Force focused on the man's hand, causing an almost imperceptible sparkle that caught Taya's weary and bloodshot eyes. The answer to the security lock-down that kept her trapped in the cold dead medical bay lay there in the death-grip of the fallen miner, taunting in its dull and scorched durasteel casing.

A standard issue plasma torch.

Whispering an apology to the dead miner, Taya fought the stiff and sickly grip of the corpse to liberate her salvation, nausea working its way up her throat as her mind raged at what she was driven to. Indeed, it was intolerable.

"Searching for answers amongst the dead?"

The voice tore through the sorrow and anger that had drawn Taya's focus and replaced it with shock. Gasping as her heartbeat skipped, Taya turned, raising the plasma torch with a clumsy motion and staring with surprised horror at Kreia.

The old woman was adjusting her robes casually, as if her apparent undeath was nothing more than a mundane awakening from an afternoon nap. Shivering in reaction to the adrenaline that had fought its way into her system and letting out a shuddering breath, Taya regarded Kreia with an incredulous expression.

"Wha- I thought you were dead!"

Kreia's sightless eyes rolled slightly, the old woman's face pinching in a slight frown of disapproval.

"Merely meditating, child. I only appeared dead. The Force preserved my life as I recovered from my injuries."

The Force, the very thought of it brought on a headache to the Exile and she grunted in an unflattering manner, brushing a hand over her face in distaste.

"Well... welcome back I suppose, Kreia. What is this place? Why are we here?"

A pale brow rose on Kreia's wrinkled features and the old woman scoffed at Taya's question, visibly showing her disbelief.

"Do you not remember? Revan dispatched his mechanical servants to collect us. Something... perhaps a Republic or remnant Sith vessel... or possibly even a pirate craft assaulted us. That rusted beast Revan keeps as a pet was damaged and you tossed it into a repair bay before ordering that rolling trash can to assist with the ship's repairs. A secondary assault dealt what very well should have been a death blow to me and I can tell you no more of what occurred."

From what she remembered of the Force, the currents whispered to the Exile that Taya spoke the truth and she frowned in concern. Revan? Why had Revan sent his two most trusted droids and not come himself or sent his Mandalorian attack dog?

"The crew is dead, I am sorry to say, Kreia. Murdered it appears by an overdose of sedatives that should well have slew me as well. I- I believe the Force sustained me until I was able to awaken... You- that was your voice I heard in my head when I awoke, wasn't it?"A thin line formed in Kreia's lips as the Force around her stirred with honest confusion. The stern expression melted into a condescending smile shortly there-after when Kreia stretched out with her senses and finally _saw_ for the first time in five years. The Force took away the darkness that had blinded her and cast a sight far superior to mere eyes.

"Convenient, I suppose that the Force would return to both of us at such a time. How our minds sought each other out I can only assume was through familiarity. We have had few other companions in the last years and both of us were given to similar fates."

A scowl marred Taya's face as she considered Kreia. The old woman looked far from similar to her. For starters, Kreia was clothed and obviously not overcome by the flows of the Force. Her composure drew a hint of resentment from the Exile before she violently pushed it away, disgusted at her pettiness.

"You appear well for having been nothing more than a corpse moments ago."Taya finally settled on a neutral, almost patronizing tone and a huffed laugh that Kreia could not suppress escaped the old woman's throat before she offered a simple acknowledgement of their predicament.

"Indeed. I think you should return your attention to escape, though. Doubtlessly the ones who assaulted us are nearby, still searching. As I am nothing more than a corpse to the logs on this station, I suppose you should be worried."

Worry settled in Taya's expression, marring her pale features as she let out a sigh and turned to the doorway. It took only a few steps before the Exile realized Kreia was not following and the former Revanchist General turned with a scowl that escaped the old woman's notice.

"Aren't you coming? If what you speculate is true, we should make haste to free ourselves of this prison."

Kreia appeared nonchalant over the entire affair, merely moving the center of the morgue and lowering herself into what was clearly a meditation position."I have other matters to attend to, child. Rest assured I will do my best to guide you from here, but I would be of little use to you until I am fully in control of my... returned powers."

Annoyed, Taya turned with a shake of her head and stormed to the door, missing the small smirk that curved Kreia's lips.

"The first lesson, my young apprentice is that power is nothing without control."

Words spoken two decades before to a young Mandalorian child echoed in the silence of the Peragus station's morgue and Kreia drew on the Force, reacquainting herself with the near-forgotten subtleties she had once been a master of. It would be a hard path, but one she walked in her youth without regret and one she would walk again.

Ozone burned Taya's nostrils and the Exile pushed down what little remained in her stomach through sheer force of will. She could not afford the dehydration that accompanied vomiting, enough had been lost already. The plasma torch made short work of the lock before her and an orange ring cast a faint glow on her features as the charred center of the damage shifted.

Urging the manual lock release on the door upwards, Taya shifted away from the doorway when the mechanism hissed ominously. She'd survived enough explosions to know what a pressure build up sounded like.

Without much fanfare the seal gave way and the doorway opened, much to Taya's relief and she stepped out through the hatch to a second that was mercifully intact. Whatever had damaged the mechanism to the medbay's doorway seemed to be isolated to that doorway. There was still power and if not for the warning of the Force, Taya knew she would have died moments later when a mining droid turned to her and charged her from where it had been dormant seconds before.

The arachnid machine scuttled across the durasteel deckplates, kicking up the most awful racket in Taya's slightly drugged and ravaged mind. Pressure built up in a throbbing cadence within the Exile's skull and she fought down the nausea and disgusted groan that tried to escape her, relying on reflexes that had served her well since the Force was lost to her.

Those reflexes persisted of staggering back away from the machine and jamming a full-intensity plasma torch into the raging droid's exposed and centralized control matrix. The hissing of the torch against the metal was all the Exile could hear as she was shoved back by a death-rattle that would have made a Gammorhean proud. Knocking her shoulder against the bulkhead, Taya cursed as she stumbled away from the droid, her hand falling against something wet and soft.

The violence of Taya's movements cause whatever she had braced herself against to give way and the young woman looked down in horror at the mutilated and bloody body of a human miner.

_"The dead have no use for frivolity. Do not concern yourself with their comfort."_

A vibroblade rested in the cold, dead grip of the slain miner and Taya swallowed back her sorrow as she pried the fingers free of the hilt. Revan had been a brutal teacher during the beginnings of the Mandalorian war and his lessons were hard-learned and hard-accepted. They were necessary for progress and survival. Rearranging the corpse in a semblance of peace, Taya wiped her hand clean of the drying blood as best she could, shivering in the chill that overtook her in the corridor.

The Exile's eyes recognized the Peragus mining colony symbol on the corpse and while she was surrounded by death and chaos, she felt a small amount of comfort in knowing where she was. The weight of a vibroblade in her hand added to that comfort and Taya proceeded in a much more careful manner, her bare feet gliding along the deckplates with barely a whisper.

She'd have to take a bit more care exploring her prison or it would become her tomb.


End file.
